Department of Ophthalmology, Xijing Hospital, Xi'an, China.
Mol Med. 2012 Feb 10;18(1):47-55. doi: 10.2119/molmed.2011.00256.
Ocular angiogenesis, characterized by the formation of new blood vessels in the avascular area in eyes, is a highly coordinated process involved in retinal vasculature formation and several ocular diseases such as age-related macular degeneration, proliferative diabetic retinopathy and retinopathy of prematurity. This process is orchestrated by complicated cellular interactions and vascular growth factors, during which endothelial cells acquire heterogeneous phenotypes and distinct cellular destinations. To date, while the vascular endothelial growth factor has been identified as the most critical angiogenic agent with a remarkable therapeutic value, the Notch signaling pathway appears to be a similarly important regulator in several angiogenic steps. Recent progress has highlighted the involvement, mechanisms and therapeutic potential of Notch signaling in retinal vasculature development and pathological angiogenesis-related eye disorders, which may cause irreversible blindness.
眼部血管生成，其特征是在眼部无血管区域形成新的血管，是一个高度协调的过程，涉及视网膜血管生成和几种眼部疾病，如年龄相关性黄斑变性、增生性糖尿病视网膜病变和早产儿视网膜病变。这个过程是由复杂的细胞相互作用和血管生长因子协调的，在此期间，内皮细胞获得异质表型和不同的细胞归宿。迄今为止，血管内皮生长因子已被确定为最关键的血管生成剂，具有显著的治疗价值，而 Notch 信号通路似乎在几个血管生成步骤中也是一个同样重要的调节剂。最近的进展强调了 Notch 信号在视网膜血管发育和病理性血管生成相关眼病中的作用、机制和治疗潜力，这些眼病可能导致不可逆转的失明。
