ABSTRACT
Angiogenesis, the formation of new blood vessels, is seen physiologically in utero during fetal growth, during wound healing, and cyclically in the menstruating endometrium.1
Normally, the microvasculature remains in a quiescent state, with very low proliferation and turnover of the endothelial cells.2 Endothelial cells rest on a specialized extracellular matrix (ECM) – the basement membrane – the main constituents of which are laminin and type IV collagen.3
