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Mapping zip codes in human vasculature

The Pharmacogenomics Journal volume 2, pages 205–206 (2002)Cite this article

The identification of human vascular zip codes could enable the delivery of drugs and therapeutic agents to specific vascular beds.

One of the ultimate goals of medicine is the creation of drugs that act only where they are needed. It is now known that vascular endothelial cells in different organs or disease states express specific markers, or ‘zip codes’, to use Folkman's analogy.1 Ligands directed against such vascular endothelial cell markers might be used to deliver toxic agents, diagnostic molecules, genes and other effector molecules to specific vascular beds in the body.2,3

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  1. University of Texas Southwestern, Simon's Cancer Center, Dallas, USA

    P E Thorpe & S Ran

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  1. P E Thorpe
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  2. S Ran
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Correspondence to P E Thorpe.

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Thorpe, P., Ran, S. Mapping zip codes in human vasculature. Pharmacogenomics J 2, 205–206 (2002). https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.tpj.6500119

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