Angiogenesis: the new potential target for the therapy of psoriasis?

Angiogenesis is a hallmark of chronic inflammation such as psoriasis. Unraveling the pathogenesis of psoriasis shows that several proangiogenic mediators are activated and highly expressed during psoriasis. Vascular endothelial growth factor, hypoxia- inducible factor, tumor necrosis factor, interleukin-8 and angiopoietins are considered to be the main players responsible for the strong vessel formation in psoriasis. The proangiogenic milieu in the skin seems to result from a proinflammatory immune response initiated by T helper cells. Interestingly, several small molecules as well as modern biologics used for systemic therapy of psoriasis have been shown to provide not only immune regulatory effects but also influence endothelial cell biology. Thus, direct targeting of angiogenesis may not only help to understand psoriasis pathogenesis but also to develop new strategies to treat psoriasis with therapeutics that halt the angiogenesis required for the inflammatory disease.