TY - JOUR
T1 - Nervous vascular parallels
T2 - Axon guidance and beyond
AU - Arese, Marco
AU - Serini, Guido
AU - Bussolino, Federico
PY - 2011
Y1 - 2011
N2 - The vascular and nervous systems are organized with well defined and accurate networks, which represent the anatomical structure enabling their functions. In recent years, it has been clearly demonstrated that these two systems share in common several mechanisms and specificities. For instance, the networking properties of the nervous and vascular systems are governed by common cues that in the brain regulate axon connections and in the vasculature remodel the primitive plexus towards the vascular tree. Here, we summarize the role of semaphorins as a paradigmatic example of the role of axon guidance molecules in physiological and pathological angiogenesis. Finally, we discuss the presence in blood vessels of neurexin and neuroligin, two proteins that finely modulate synaptic activity in the brain. This observation is suggestive of an intriguing new class of molecular and functional parallels between neurons and vascular cells.
AB - The vascular and nervous systems are organized with well defined and accurate networks, which represent the anatomical structure enabling their functions. In recent years, it has been clearly demonstrated that these two systems share in common several mechanisms and specificities. For instance, the networking properties of the nervous and vascular systems are governed by common cues that in the brain regulate axon connections and in the vasculature remodel the primitive plexus towards the vascular tree. Here, we summarize the role of semaphorins as a paradigmatic example of the role of axon guidance molecules in physiological and pathological angiogenesis. Finally, we discuss the presence in blood vessels of neurexin and neuroligin, two proteins that finely modulate synaptic activity in the brain. This observation is suggestive of an intriguing new class of molecular and functional parallels between neurons and vascular cells.
KW - Neurexin
KW - Neuroligin
KW - Semaphorin
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U2 - 10.1387/ijdb.103242ma
DO - 10.1387/ijdb.103242ma
M3 - Article
C2 - 21858769
AN - SCOPUS:79961002277
VL - 55
SP - 439
EP - 445
JO - International Journal of Developmental Biology
JF - International Journal of Developmental Biology
SN - 0214-6282
IS - 4-5
ER -