Vessel wall–derived endothelial cells rapidly proliferate because they contain a complete hierarchy of endothelial progenitor cells

Abstract

Endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs

The isolation and culture of endothelial colony-forming cells from human and rat lungs

“…Rat ECFCs express endothelial surface markers VCAM-1 and ICAM-2 15,24 . They also express CD34 and c-Kit, cell-surface antigens previously identified on endothelial and hematopoietic progenitor cells 15,25 (Figure 7).…”

“…Rat ECFCs express endothelial surface markers VCAM-1 and ICAM-2 15,24 . They also express CD34 and c-Kit, cell-surface antigens previously identified on endothelial and hematopoietic progenitor cells 15,25 (Figure 7). In addition to binding Ulex europaeus lectin, rat lung ECFCs also bind the lectin from Griffonia simplicifolia, indicating its likely origin from lung microvasculature 26 .…”

“…Among the various described cell types with an "EPC phenotype", endothelial colony forming cells (ECFCs), also referred to as late-outgrowth EPCs, have received widespread attention as lineagespecific 'true EPCs' participating in neovasculogenesis 10,13,14 . ECFCs may reside throughout the vascular endothelium contributing to generalized vascular integrity 15 . ECFCs are mobilized into a circulating pool of endothelial progenitors, potentially involved in neovasculogenesis via tissue recruitment and homing 16 , however the mechanism for this is not known at present.…”

Endothelial progenitor cells for cancer gene therapy

“…They possess a larger capacity to form colonies, proliferate more and longer, and have longer telomeres. 55 Of note, harvesting cord blood does not require invasive methods, in contrast to the procurement of bone marrow. Transplanted cord blood-derived EPCs efficiently enhance postnatal neovascularization in vivo.…”

Stem cells: novel players in the treatment of erectile dysfunction

“…82 Meanwhile, at least one research group believes that EPCs are native inhabitants of certain blood vessel walls, and it would be instructive to determine whether EPCs are embedded within the penile vasculature and can be stimulated to repair dysfunctional penile ECs. 84 Recently, several groups demonstrated that in ED patients, the reduced level of EPCs could be restored by administration of PDE5i, 85,86 such as vardenafil and tadalafil, resulting in an effective vasculoprotection and prevention of the initiation and progression of endothelial dysfunction. The mechanisms remain unknown; however, a possible hypothesis involves the presence of PDE5 in bone marrow that, when inhibited, may magnify the local effect of nitric oxide, thus leading to the mobilisation of stem and progenitor cells.…”