Description
Product Characteristics:
The onset of angiogenesis is believed to be an early event in tumorigenesis and may facilitate tumor progression and metastasis. Several growth factors with angiogenic activity have been described and include fibroblast growth factor (FGF), platelet derived growth factor (PDGF) and vascular endothelial growth factors (VEGFs). The VEGF protein family is comprised of VEGF, VEGF-B, VEGF-C and VEGF-D, all of which may exhibit angiogenic function in vivo. VEGF-B, which exists as two alternatively spliced isoforms known as VEGF-B167 and VEGF-B186, is abundantly expressed in heart and skeletal muscle and is frequently co-expressed with VEGF. VEGF-C binds to and specifically activates Flt-4 and Flk-1.
Subcellular location: Secreted, Extracellular matrix
Synonyms: Vascular endothelial growth factor B, VEGF B, VEGFB, VEGF-B, VEGF related factor, VEGFL, Vrf, vascular endothelial growth factor B isoform VEGFB-167 precursor, VEGFB_HUMAN.
Target Information: This gene encodes a member of the PDGF (platelet-derived growth factor)/VEGF (vascular endothelial growth factor) family. The VEGF family members regulate the formation of blood vessels and are involved in endothelial cell physiology. This member is a ligand for VEGFR-1 (vascular endothelial growth factor receptor 1) and NRP-1 (neuropilin-1). Studies in mice showed that this gene was co-expressed with nuclear-encoded mitochondrial genes and the encoded protein specifically controlled endothelial uptake of fatty acids. Alternatively spliced transcript variants encoding distinct isoforms have been identified. [provided by RefSeq, Sep 2011]