Angiogenesis inhibitor
Some angiogenesis inhibitors are endogenous and a normal part of the body's control and others are obtained exogenously through pharmaceutical drugs or diet.
Angiogenesis inhibitors were once thought to have potential as a "silver bullet" treatment applicable to many types of cancer, but the limitations of anti-angiogenic therapy have been shown in practice.
Angiogenesis inhibitors are also used to effectively treat macular degeneration in the eye, and other diseases that involve a proliferation of blood vessels.
The principal stimulus for this angiogenic switch appears to be oxygen deprivation, although other stimuli such as inflammation, oncogenic mutations and mechanical stress may also play a role.
These stimulate endothelial cell proliferation, migration and invasion resulting in new vascular structures sprouting from nearby blood vessels.
Endogenous inhibitors, found in the body naturally, are involved in the day-to-day process of regulating blood vessel formation.
[14] A recent method for the delivery of anti-angiogenesis factors to tumor regions in cancer patients uses genetically modified bacteria that are able to colonize solid tumors in vivo, such as Clostridium, Bifidobacteria and Salmonella by adding genes for anti-angiogenic factors such as endostatin or IP10 chemokine and removing any harmful virulence genes.
In particular, the following foods contain significant inhibitors and have been suggested as part of a healthy diet for this and other benefits: Research and development in this field has been driven largely by the desire to find better cancer treatments.
By blocking VEGF, inhibitors can cause regression of the abnormal blood vessels in the retina and improve vision when injected directly into the vitreous humor of the eye.
[45] According to a study published in the August 15, 2004 issue of the journal Cancer Research, cannabinoids, the active ingredients in marijuana, restrict the sprouting of blood vessels to gliomas (brain tumors) implanted under the skin of mice, by inhibiting the expression of genes needed for the production of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF).
[citation needed] While the mechanisms of bleeding induced by anti-VEGF agents are complicated and not yet totally understood, the most accepted hypothesis is that VEGF could promote endothelial cell survival and integrity in the adult vasculature and its inhibition may decrease capacity for renewal of damaged endothelial cells.
