ABSTRACT

Direct effects of VEGF on non-endothelial cells................................... 133 Effects of VEGF on epithelial organs ..................................................... 134

Involvement of VEGF in lung maturation and pulmonary diseases ........................................................................................... 135 VEGF in glomerular function and renal homeostasis ............ 137 VEGF in liver morphogenesis and pathology.......................... 139 VEGF in morphogenesis of pancreas ........................................ 141

Effects of VEGF on connective tissue..................................................... 141 Cartilage and Bone Formation.................................................... 142 VEGF and hematopoiesis............................................................. 144

Effects of VEGF on muscle tissue ........................................................... 146 Role of VEGF in the nervous system ..................................................... 147

VEGF in development of the nervous system ......................... 147 Effects of VEGF on cultured neural cells.................................. 149 VEGF and ALS: survival of adult motor neurons .................. 149 VEGF in other neurodegenerative disorders ........................... 151

Conclusions and perspectives.................................................................. 152 References................................................................................................... 153

Direct effects of VEGF on non-endothelial cells Perhaps no other growth factor is better known for its angiogenic properties than vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). VEGF signaling on vascular endothelial cells plays essential roles in virtually all aspects of cardiovascular

system formation,1 and has been implicated in many angiogenic disorders including those associated with cancer progression, inflammatory disorders, infectious diseases, and pathologies associated with cardiovascular ischemia.2 Recent experimental evidence has, however, unveiled other, probably underestimated, implications of angiogenic growth factors in health and disease. On the one hand, VEGF is critically involved in the development and homeostasis of various tissues and organs through its direct effects on the vasculature. On the other hand, certain novel functions of VEGF, such as those influencing the morphogenesis and maintenance of organs, are not principally dependent on VEGF’s capacity to stimulate blood vessel growth and maintenance.