title: Potential role of the Slit/Robo signal pathway in angiogenesis.
abstract: Intensive investigations on angiogenesis and vasculogenesis have increased our understanding of molecular mechanisms of blood vessel formation during pathologic and developmental conditions. However, endothelial cells (ECs), the main component of vasculature, are heterogeneous, as revealed by our phenotypic and molecular biological studies in the laboratory, and it is still hard to adequately understand the molecular mechanisms of angiogenesis and vasculogenesis. Indeed, there are several major ligand/receptor signal pathways: VEGF/VEGFR, Jagged-1/Notch, Wnt ligand/frizzled receptor, and ephrin/Eph; each of which having distinct and independent roles during vascular formation. In this review, we focus on the angiogenic effect of the Slit and Robo signal pathway that was formally known as neuronal axon guidance. Among the existing vascular signals, this pathway is the most recently found ligand/receptor vascular signal, and may play important physiological roles as other major receptor/ligand signals do. Here, we briefly address: (1) the background of Slit and Robo families; (2) expression patterns of Slit and Robo; (3) functional roles of the Slit/Robo pathway in vascular formation; and (4) confronting tasks of this novel vascular pathway in the near future. Together, a summary of these data suggest the essential role of the Slit/Robo pathway in angiogenesis, and may explain why multiple vascular signals exist in heterogenic endothelial cells.
authors.affiliation: Department of Molecular Pathology, Nippon Medical School, Graduate School of Medicine, Institute of Gerontology, Kawasaki, Kanagawa, Japan.
authors.forename: Masakazu
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Fujiwara
authors.forename: Mohammad
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ghazizadeh
authors.forename: Oichi
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Kawanami
mesh_terms: D020533:Angiogenesis Inhibitors / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use; D000818:Animals; D001808:Blood Vessels / Q000196:embryology / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D036341:Intercellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000098:blood supply / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000378:metabolism; D009389:Neovascularization, Pathologic / Q000378:metabolism / Q000517:prevention & control; D018919:Neovascularization, Physiologic / Q000502:physiology*; D009419:Nerve Tissue Proteins / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors / Q000378:metabolism*; D011956:Receptors, Cell Surface / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors / Q000378:metabolism*; D015398:Signal Transduction; D000098552:Slit Homolog 2 Protein; D000097905:Roundabout Proteins
chemical_list: D020533:Angiogenesis Inhibitors; D036341:Intercellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins; D009419:Nerve Tissue Proteins; D011956:Receptors, Cell Surface; D000098552:Slit Homolog 2 Protein; C462951:ROBO4 protein, human; D000097905:Roundabout Proteins