الصفحة 1
الصفحة 1
Mechanisms of Angiogenesis
Is it advisable to go back from bedside to the bench? During the last decade, few topics encountered such a broad interest in bio- gy and medicine as angiogenesis. The amazing ability of the body to restore blood flow by induction of blood vessel growth as part of an adaptive process has alarmed physicians dealing with diseases in which angiogenesis is either exaggerated (as in tumors) or too slow (as in ischemic diseases of heart and brain). Not surprisingly, pro- and antiangiogenic strategies have found their way into clinical trials. For instance, for the USA, the NIH website in early 2004 displayed 38 clinical studies involving either pro- or antiangiogenic th- apies. Given the expected overwhelming wealth of clinical data, the question may be asked whether further exploration of biological mechanisms is required or whether results from the bedside are instructive enough to proceed. This question depends also on the progress of pro- and antiangiogenic clinical trials. In the following, I give a short overview about some of the progress that has been made in this field. Since Judah Folkman proposed antiangiogenic tumor therapy thirty years ago, it has become increasingly evident that agents which interfere with blood vessel formation also block tumor progression. Accordingly, antiangiogenic therapy has gained much attention as a potential adjunct to conventional c- cer therapy.
Filgrastim in clinical oncology : Guarding against neutropenia
Granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) has driven the attention of researchers as a therapeutic agent for curing patients suffering from neutropenia. Despite the successful use of G-CSF, it currently requires daily injections, which are inconvenient, expensive, and distressing for children. Therefore, an alternative strategy for using G-CSF for treatment is needed. Understanding the G-CSF structure, expression, mechanism of action, and how it induces neutrophils mobilization is crucial to producing promising cancer therapy. The ability of G-CSF to mobilize hematopoietic stem cells from the bone marrow into the blood circulation was consequently exploited and altered the practice of hematopoietic stem cell transplantation.
Cardiovascular Regeneration Therapies Using Tissue Engineering Approaches
The cardiovascular system transports oxygen and nutrients to all parts of the body; therefore, any impediment to this system through, for example, a circulatory disorder, represents a serious threat to organs, tissues, and cells. Obstructive diseases of vessels with a diameter of more than 1 mm can be treated by conventional surgical and interventional approaches; however, blockages in small vessels with a diameter of less than 1 mm cannot be treated by conventional methods. As a consequence, therapeutic ang- genesis and vasculogenesis for the treatment of ischemic diseases have been widely studied in the last decade. These methods may contribute to the re pair of intractable cardiovascular diseases with a main vascular involvement in the body's smallest vessels. In this book, Hikaru Matsuda and I have tried to summarize recent Japanese developments in the field of cardiovascular regeneration therapies using tissue engineering.
