Review
Macrophages and angiogenesis: a role for Wnt signaling
1 The Department of Molecular Biology and Biochemistry, University of California Irvine, Irvine, CA, 92697, USA
2 The Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of California Irvine, Irvine, CA, 92697, USA
3 The Edwards Lifesciences Center for Advanced Cardiovascular Technology, University of California Irvine, Irvine, CA, 92697, USA
Vascular Cell 2012, 4:13 doi:10.1186/2045-824X-4-13
Published: 31 August 2012Abstract
Macrophages regulate many developmental and pathological processes in both embryonic and adult tissues, and recent studies have shown a significant role in angiogenesis. Similarly, Wnt signaling is fundamental to tissue morphogenesis and also has a role in vascular development. In this review, we summarize recent advances in the field of macrophage-regulated angiogenesis, with a focus on the role of macrophage-derived Wnt ligands. We review data that provide both direct and indirect evidence for macrophage-derived Wnt regulation of physiologic and pathologic angiogenesis. Finally, we propose that Wnt signaling plays a central role in differentiation of tumor associated and wound infiltrating macrophages to a proangiogenic phenotype.
