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Updated: Nov 12, 2025

Incorporating Pericytes into an Endothelial Cell Bead Sprouting Assay
Published on: February 16, 2018
Pericytes in Vascular Development
Laura Beth Payne1, Maruf Hoque1,2, Clifton Houk3,4
1Center for Heart and Reparative Medicine Research, Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at Virginia Tech-Carilion, Roanoke, VA 24016, USA.
Purpose Of Review:
Pericytes are essential components of capillaries in many tissues and organs, contributing to vessel stability and integrity, with additional contributions to microvascular function still being discovered. We review current and foundational studies identifying pericyte differentiation mechanics and their roles in the earliest stages of vessel formation.
Recent Findings:
Recent advances in pericyte-focused tools and models have illuminated critical aspects of pericyte biology including their roles in vascular development.Pericytes likely collaborate with endothelial cells undergoing vasculogenesis, initiating direct interactions during sprouting and intussusceptive angiogenesis. Pericytes also provide important regulation of vascular growth including mechanisms underlying vessel pruning, rarefaction, and subsequent regrowth.
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