[Proliferative activity of endotheliocytes of growing corneal capillaries in the rabbit]

The intensity of capillaries growth in the rabbit's cornea was investigated after chemical burn and exposure to colchicine. Proliferative activity was determined in endothelial cells along the course of newly formed capillaries. Growth intensity proved to be 2 times higher when burn and colchicine effects were combined, than in case of burn alone. The increase in the proliferative activity of endothelial cells and the peculiarities of their arrangement were found in both cases. The most active proliferation was observed in cells located in a zone where capillaries originated from intact vessels of the limb. The process of new vessel formation depends on endotheliocyte shift from this zone towards the site where growth-stimulating factors were applied.