First published online December 31, 2003
Journal of Cell Science 117, 301e (2004)
© The Company of Biologists Limited
Electrical stimulation for endothelia
Electrical stimulation is a novel approach to treating ischemia and appears to promote angiogenesis (formation of new blood vessels) by causing muscle to release vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). But small electrical fields arise naturally around some cells – for example, as a consequence of ion transport or wounding. Can these promote angiogenesis? On p. 397, Colin McCaig and co-workers reveal that they might. The authors show that small, physiological, electrical fields cause cultured endothelial cells to reorient, elongate and undergo directional migration, which is critical for angiogenesis. They also find that the electrical fields stimulate production of VEGF by the cells. Moreover, they demonstrate that drugs that inhibit VEGF receptor activation block the angiogenic responses, as do inhibitors of PI 3-kinase and the Rho GTPase effector ROCK – downstream signalling molecules required for cytoskeletal reorganization and consequently cell migration. Given that endogenous electrical fields are frequently – if not always – generated during angiogenesis, these findings raise the possibility that they represent physiological cues that orchestrate the process. The results also indicate that such fields can act directly on endothelial cells, as well as muscle.
Related articles in JCS:
- Electrical stimulation directly induces pre-angiogenic responses in vascular endothelial cells by signaling through VEGF receptors
- Min Zhao, Huai Bai, Entong Wang, John V. Forrester, and Colin D. McCaig
JCS 2004 117: 397-405.
[Abstract]
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