title: A role for partial endothelial-mesenchymal transitions in angiogenesis?
abstract: The contribution of epithelial-to-mesenchymal transitions (EMT) in both developmental and pathological conditions has been widely recognized and studied. In a parallel process, governed by a similar set of signaling and transcription factors, endothelial-to-mesenchymal transitions (EndoMT) contribute to heart valve formation and the generation of cancer-associated fibroblasts. During angiogenic sprouting, endothelial cells express many of the same genes and break down basement membrane; however, they retain intercellular junctions and migrate as a connected train of cells rather than as individual cells. This has been termed a partial endothelial-to-mesenchymal transition. A key regulatory check-point determines whether cells undergo a full or a partial epithelial-to-mesenchymal transitions/endothelial-to-mesenchymal transition; however, very little is known about how this switch is controlled. Here we discuss these developmental/pathological pathways, with a particular focus on their role in vascular biology.
authors.affiliation: From the Department of Molecular Biology and Biochemistry (K.M.W.-R., N.W., C.C.W.H.), Department of Biomedical Engineering (C.C.W.H.), and Edwards Lifesciences Center for Advanced Cardiovascular Technology (C.C.W.H.), University of California, Irvine.
authors.forename: Katrina M
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: Welch-Reardon
authors.affiliation: From the Department of Molecular Biology and Biochemistry (K.M.W.-R., N.W., C.C.W.H.), Department of Biomedical Engineering (C.C.W.H.), and Edwards Lifesciences Center for Advanced Cardiovascular Technology (C.C.W.H.), University of California, Irvine.
authors.forename: Nan
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.affiliation: From the Department of Molecular Biology and Biochemistry (K.M.W.-R., N.W., C.C.W.H.), Department of Biomedical Engineering (C.C.W.H.), and Edwards Lifesciences Center for Advanced Cardiovascular Technology (C.C.W.H.), University of California, Irvine. cchughes@uci.edu.
authors.forename: Christopher C W
authors.initials: CC
authors.lastname: Hughes
mesh_terms: D042501:Angiogenic Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D000818:Animals; D042783:Endothelial Cells / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology*; D058750:Epithelial-Mesenchymal Transition; D006801:Humans; D009389:Neovascularization, Pathologic; D018919:Neovascularization, Physiologic; D015398:Signal Transduction; D014157:Transcription Factors / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D042501:Angiogenic Proteins; D014157:Transcription Factors
keywords: EMT; angiogenesis; endothelial; transcription factor