Influence of inflammatory cytokines on arteriogenesis

Blood vessel growth after birth is limited to two major processes. Angiogenesis is the growth of new capillaries by sprouting or intussusception. The major stimulus for angiogenesis is ischemia. In contrast, arteriogenesis describes the remodeling and growth of collateral arteries from a preexisting arteriolar network. Arteriogenesis is induced after the occlusion of a major artery which induces hemodynamic and mechanical effects on the collateral vessel wall which occur with increasing blood flow velocity due to the low pressure at the reentrant site of the collateral vessel. A variety of different cytokines that act by stimulating endothelial and smooth muscle cell proliferation and migration or recruitment and activation of monocytes have been identified to stimulate angiogenesis and/or arteriogenesis (i.e., MCP-1, FGF-2, TGF-beta, VEGF, and GM-CSF). Several clinical trials have been published in that field to suggest the feasibility and safety of treatment with such cytokines or their genes. However, the results indicate that further studies are needed before proangiogenic and proarteriogenic therapies are ready for clinical application.