Background—Aging is a risk factor for coronary and peripheral artery disease. Tumor necrosis factor(TNF), a proinflammatory cytokine, is expressed in ischemic tissue and is known to modulate angiogenesis. Little is known about the role of TNFreceptors (TNFR1/p55 and TNFR2/p75) in angiogenic signaling. Methods and Results—We studied neovascularization in the hindlimb ischemia model in young and ...

In the microcirculation, pericytes are believed to function as mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs). We hypothesized that the vasa vasorum harbor progenitor cells within the adventitia of human aorta. Pericytes, endothelial progenitor cells, and other cell subpopulations were detected among freshly isolated adventitial cells using flow cytometry. Purified cultured pericytes were enriched for the MS...

Tissue regeneration involves the formation of new blood vessels regulated by angiogenic factors. We reported recently that the expression of the angiogenic factor CCN1 is up-regulated under various pathophysiologic conditions within the cardiovascular system. Because CD34 progenitor cells participate in cardiovascular tissue regeneration, we investigated whether CCN1—detected for the first time...