| Description |
Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A (VEGFA) is a member of the PDGF/VEGF growth factor family and is often found as a disulfide linked homodimer. VEGFA is a glycosylated mitogen that specifically acts on endothelial cells and has various effects, including mediating increased vascular permeability, inducing angiogenesis, vasculogenesis, endothelial cell growth, promoting cell migration, and inhibiting apoptosis. Elevated levels of VEGFA is linked to POEMS syndrome, also known as Crow-Fukase syndrome. Mutations in VEGFA have been associated with proliferative and non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy. Alternatively spliced transcript variants, encoding either freely secreted or cell-associated isoforms, have been characterized. There is also evidence for the use of non-AUG (CUG) translation initiation sites upstream of, and in-frame with the first AUG, leading to additional isoforms. |
