Blood and Lymphatic Vessel Formation

Victoria L. Bautch; Kathleen M. Caron

doi:10.1101/cshperspect.a008268

Blood and Lymphatic Vessel Formation

Victoria L. Bautch1,2,3 and
Kathleen M. Caron2,4

¹Department of Biology, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina 27599
²McAllister Heart Institute, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina 27599
³Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina 27599
⁴Department of Cell and Molecular Physiology, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina 27599

Correspondence: bautch{at}med.unc.edu

Abstract

Blood and lymphatic vessels deliver oxygen and nutrients, remove waste and CO₂, and regulate interstitial pressure in tissues and organs. These vessels begin life early in embryogenesis using transcription factors and signaling pathways that regulate differentiation, morphogenesis, and proliferation. Here we describe how these vessels develop in the mouse embryo, and the signals that are important to their development.