Molecular Mechanisms of Angiogenesis and Inflammation in Retinal Diseases

Dear Colleagues, 

Angiogenesis is a fundamental biological process in which new capillary blood vessels are formed by sprouting or splitting from pre-existing ones. While physiological angiogenesis plays an essential role in the development of retinal vasculature, uncontrolled new vessel growth resulting in retinal dysfunction and damage is a major cause of vision loss in common retinal diseases such as diabetic retinopathy, retinopathy of prematurity, and age-related macular degeneration. In contrast to mature blood vessels, the pathological new vessels are malstructured and hyperpermeable, resulting in retinal exudates, edema, hemorrhage, and immune cell infiltration. Furthermore, recent research suggests that endothelial cells themselves can function as a type of innate immune cells. Under pathological conditions such as diabetic retinopathy, activated endothelial cells express and secret inflammatory cytokines that attract macrophages and leukocytes, which, in turn, exacerbate retinal inflammation and promote angiogenesis. Inflammation also plays a central role in retinal neurodegeneration that ultimately leads to blindness. Understanding the molecular and cellular mechanisms of angiogenesis and inflammation in retinal diseases is therefore critical for developing new therapeutic interventions to preserve vision.

This Special Issue entitled “Molecular Mechanisms of Angiogenesis and Inflammation in Retinal Diseases” solicits original research and review articles that illustrate new findings on the topics of retinal angiogenesis and inflammation and provide mechanistic insights into pathogenesis of retinal diseases. We anticipate that these contributions will not only help in advancing our understanding and knowledge of signaling pathways that regulate the complex interplay of angiogenesis and inflammation but also facilitate the discovery of new treatment for retinal diseases. 

Prof. Dr. Sarah Xin Zhang
Dr. Joshua Jianxin Wang
Guest Editors

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