Control of blood vessel identity: from embryo to adult

Arteries and veins have been historically defined by the direction of blood flow and oxygen tension within the vessel, in addition to their functional, hemodynamic, and anatomical differences. It is now known that the molecular identity of these vessels is genetically predetermined, with specific molecular pathways activated during the development of arteries and veins. Eph-B4 is a determinant of venous differentiation and Ephrin-B2 is a determinant of arterial differentiation. Placement of a vein into the higher pressure and flow of the arterial circulation results in adaptation of the vein to the arterial environment. There is selective loss of Eph-B4 expression without induction of Ephrin-B2 expression during vein graft adaptation. These findings suggest that loss of venous identity is the crucial mechanism in vein graft adaptation and that developmentally critical determinants of vessel identity are plastic during adult life.