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Retinal angiogenesis in development and disease

Nature volume 438, pages 960–966 (2005)Cite this article

Abstract

The retina has long been regarded as ‘an approachable part of the brain’ for investigating neurosensory processes. Cell biologists are now capitalizing on the accessibility of the retina to investigate important aspects of developmental angiogenesis, including how it relates to neuronal and glial development, morphogenesis, oxygen sensing and progenitor cells. Pathological angiogenesis also occurs in the retina and is a major feature of leading blinding diseases, particularly diabetic retinopathy. The retina and its clinical disorders have a pivotal role in angiogenesis research and provide model systems in which to investigate neurovascular relationships and angiogenic diseases.

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Figure 1: Anatomy and histological organization of the retina.
Figure 2: Clinical retinal diseases characterized by aberrant retinal angiogenesis.
Figure 3: Stereotypical timing and morphology of retinal vascularization.
Figure 4: Vascular endothelial growth factor in retinal development.
Figure 5: Glial–vascular relationships in retinal vascularization.
Figure 6: Bone-marrow-derived progenitor cells incorporate into perinatal and adult retinal vasculature.

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Acknowledgements

We thank the following for generously providing material for figures: T. Bennett (Fig. 2b, d), C. Betsholtz (Figs 4c, d, 5c), M. Friedlander (Fig. 6a), M. Fruttiger (Fig. 5d, e), F. Gage (Fig. 6b), F. Galimi (Fig. 6b), A. Otani (Fig. 6a), J. Provis (Fig. 2e) and T. Sandercoe (Fig. 2e). We acknowledge support from the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation and the American Diabetes Association (T.G.).

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  1. Department of Ophthalmology, Stanford University School of Medicine, A-157, 300 Pasteur Drive, Palo Alto, 94305, California, USA

    Ray F. Gariano

  2. Departments of Ophthalmology and Cellular & Molecular Physiology, Penn State College of Medicine, Hershey, 17033, Pennsylvania, USA

    Thomas W. Gardner

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Correspondence to Ray F. Gariano.

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Gariano, R., Gardner, T. Retinal angiogenesis in development and disease. Nature 438, 960–966 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1038/nature04482

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