Gene behind 'blood vessel' formation discovered
Posted: August 12, 2014 at 2:47 am
A new research has helped discover the gene, which plays a crucial role in formation of blood vessel.
Professor David Beech at the University of Leeds, who led the research, said that the blood vessel networks were not already pre-constructed but emerged rather like a river system. Vessels do not develop until the blood is already flowing and they are created in response to the amount of flow. The gene, Piezo1, provides the instructions for sensors that tell the body that blood is flowing correctly and gives the signal to form new vessel structures.
The gene gives instructions to a protein which forms channels that open in response to mechanical strain from blood flow, allowing tiny electrical charges to enter cells and trigger the changes needed for new vessels to be built, he added.
The research team further plans to study the effects of manipulating the gene on cancers, which require a blood supply to grow, as well as in heart diseases such as atherosclerosis, where plaques form in parts of blood vessels with disturbed blood flow.
(Posted on 11-08-2014)