Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2018 Dec;23(6):411-415.
doi: 10.1016/j.siny.2018.08.008. Epub 2018 Sep 6.

Intestinal microcirculation and necrotizing enterocolitis: The vascular endothelial growth factor system

Rakhee M Bowker  1 , Xiaocai Yan  2 , Isabelle G De Plaen  3
Affiliations
Review

Intestinal microcirculation and necrotizing enterocolitis: The vascular endothelial growth factor system

Rakhee M Bowker et al. Semin Fetal Neonatal Med. 2018 Dec.

Abstract

Necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC), a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in preterm neonates, is a devastating disease characterized by intestinal tissue inflammation and necrosis. NEC pathogenesis is multifactorial but remains unclear. Translocation of bacteria and/or bacterial products across a weak intestinal barrier in the setting of impaired mucosal immunity leads to an exaggerated inflammatory response and secondary mucosal epithelial injury. In addition to prematurity, other risk factors for NEC include congenital heart disease, maternal pre-eclampsia with placental vascular insufficiency, severe anemia and blood transfusion - all conditions that predispose the intestine to ischemia. We recently found that maldevelopment of the intestinal microvasculature plays an important role in NEC pathogenesis. Here we review the evidence supporting a role for defective development of the intestinal mucosal microvasculature and perturbations of intestinal blood flow in NEC, emphasizing the importance of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and the VEGF receptor-2 signaling pathway.

Keywords: Angiogenesis; Intestinal ischemia; Intestinal microvasculature; Intrauterine infection; Necrotizing enterocolitis; Vascular endothelial growth factor; Vascular endothelial growth factor receptor 2; intrauterine inflammation.

PubMed Disclaimer

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

Publication types

MeSH terms

Substances

LinkOut - more resources