Stem cell biology for vascular regeneration.
The isolation of endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) derived from bone marrow (BM) was one epoch-making event for the recognition of neovessel formation in adults occurring as physiological and pathological responses. The finding that EPCs home to sites of neovascularization and differentiate into endothelial cells (ECs) in situ is consistent with vasculogenesis, a critical paradigm that has been well described for embryonic neovascularization, but proposed recently in adults in which a reservoir of stem or progenitor cells contribute to vascular organogenesis. EPCs have also been considered as therapeutic agents to supply the potent origin of neovascularization under pathological conditions. This chapter highlights an update of EPC biology as well as its potential use for therapeutic regeneration.
Asahara
T
T
Riken Center for Developmental Biology, Kobe, Japan. asa777@aol.com
D000328:Adult; D001808:Blood Vessels / Q000502:physiology*; D017690:Cell Transplantation; D015316:Genetic Therapy; D006801:Humans; D012038:Regeneration; D013234:Stem Cells / Q000166:cytology*