Abstract
The capability of forming functional blood vessel networks is critical for the characterization of endothelial cells. In this chapter, we will review a modified in vivo vascular network forming assay by replacing traditional mouse tumor-derived Matrigel with a well-defined collagen–fibrin hydrogel. The assay is reliable and does not require special equipment, surgical procedure, or a skilled person to perform. Moreover, investigators can modify this method on-demand for testing different cell sources, perturbation of gene functions, growth factors, and pharmaceutical molecules, and for the development and investigation of strategies to enhance neovascularization of engineered human tissues and organs.
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Acknowledgments
This work was supported by the National Institutes of Health grants R01AR069038 and R01HL128452 to J. M.-M.
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Kim, H.D., Lin, RZ., Melero-Martin, J.M. (2021). In Vivo Vascular Network Forming Assay. In: Ribatti, D. (eds) Vascular Morphogenesis. Methods in Molecular Biology, vol 2206. Humana, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-0716-0916-3_14
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-0716-0916-3_14
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