VEGF121/rGel: A Targeted Therapy for Tumor Blood Vessels
Author Information
Author(s): Mohamedali Khalid A, Ran Sophia, Gomez-Manzano Candelaria, Ramdas Latha, Xu Jing, Kim Sehoon, Cheung Lawrence H, Hittelman Walter N, Zhang Wei, Waltenberger Johannes, Thorpe Philip E, Rosenblum Michael G
Primary Institution: The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center
Hypothesis
The fusion protein VEGF121/rGel targets and destroys tumor neovasculature by specifically affecting endothelial cells that overexpress VEGFR-2.
Conclusion
VEGF121/rGel selectively targets and kills endothelial cells overexpressing VEGFR-2, inhibiting angiogenesis without affecting normal blood vessels.
Supporting Evidence
- VEGF121/rGel was found to bind specifically to VEGFR-2 but not to VEGFR-1.
- VEGF121/rGel demonstrated a 100-fold difference in cytotoxicity between cells expressing VEGFR-2 and those expressing VEGFR-1.
- Treatment with VEGF121/rGel completely inhibited bFGF-stimulated neovascular growth in chicken chorioallantoic membranes.
Takeaway
This study shows that a special protein can kill cancer blood vessel cells without hurting normal cells, which could help treat tumors better.
Methodology
The study involved in vitro and in vivo experiments assessing the binding, cytotoxicity, and internalization of VEGF121/rGel in endothelial cells expressing different VEGF receptors.
Potential Biases
Potential bias in the interpretation of results due to the use of specific cell lines and experimental conditions.
Limitations
The study primarily focused on specific cell lines and may not fully represent the complexity of tumor environments in vivo.
Statistical Information
P-Value
p<0.001
Statistical Significance
p<0.001
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
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