Corneal (lymph)angiogenesis--from bedside to bench and back: a tribute to Judah Folkman.
The normal cornea, the transparent "windscreen" of the eye, is devoid of both blood and lymphatic vessels. Nevertheless, both hem- and lymphangiogenesis can occur in response to severe corneal inflammation and can lead to blindness. Judah Folkman and co-workers exceedingly used the normally avascular cornea as the in vivo model system to study the mechanisms of angiogenesis and to test activators and inhibitors of angiogenesis in the last 3 decades. Recently, the cornea also became a successful model to study especially inflammatory lymphangiogenesis. As the last step in the circle from bedside to bench and back, we now are seeing the first (usually off-label) use of specific novel angiogenesis inhibitors in the diseased and pathologically vascularized human cornea to treat sight-threatening corneal angiogenesis and to promote graft survival after corneal transplantation by inhibiting lymphangiogenesis.
Regenfuss
Birgit
B
Department of Ophthalmology and Interdisciplinary Center for Clinical Research (IZKF), Friedrich-Alexander University Erlangen-Nürnberg, Erlangen, Germany.
Bock
Felix
F
Parthasarathy
Anand
A
Cursiefen
Claus
C
D020533:Angiogenesis Inhibitors / Q000494:pharmacology; D000818:Animals; D001808:Blood Vessels / Q000473:pathology; D003315:Cornea / Q000098:blood supply* / Q000473:pathology*; D016510:Corneal Neovascularization / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000473:pathology*; D016039:Corneal Transplantation / Q000379:methods; D006085:Graft Survival; D006801:Humans; D007249:Inflammation; D042583:Lymphangiogenesis; D051379:Mice; D008954:Models, Biological; D009389:Neovascularization, Pathologic; D019408:Platelet Endothelial Cell Adhesion Molecule-1 / Q000096:biosynthesis; D042461:Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A / Q000378:metabolism
D020533:Angiogenesis Inhibitors; D019408:Platelet Endothelial Cell Adhesion Molecule-1; D042461:Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A