Talking the talk: the role of VEGF proteins in cell signaling

Vascular endothelial growth factors (VEGFs) stimulate endothelial cell growth through interactions with their tyrosine kinase receptors to stimulate intracellular signaling events. This culminates in the expression of specific gene products that induce a cellular response in numerous physiological processes, including hematopoeisis, oncogenesis and embryogenesis. The primordial function of VEGF can be revealed by studying VEGF-mediated signaling pathways in the powerful and tractable model system, Drosophila melanogaster, which has proved invaluable in furthering our understanding of conserved developmental themes.