Roles of Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor and Its Receptors in Embryonic Zebrafish Vascular Development
血管内皮生长因子及其受体在斑马鱼胚胎血管发育中的作用

VEGF (vascular endothelial growth factor) is a highly specific endothelial cell mitogen and it is critical for vascularization of tissues, including tumors. The central role of VEGF in angiogenesis makes it an attractive target for anti-tumor therapy. Recently, zebrafish has been generally considered as an excellent model in case of drug screening, disease model establishment, and vertebrate embryonic development study. In this study, we documented the advantage of zebrafish as cardiovascular model and predicated the method for vascular observation. Emphasis was focused on the research progress of VEGF and its receptors in the recent years. The future of this research field was discussed, too.