The Biochemistry of Endothelial Cells

The last two decades have seen enormous progress in vascular endothelial cell biology with significant advances in our understanding of the regulation of endothelial cell functions, the discovery and extensive study of endothelial cell relaxation and constriction factors, in particular nitric oxide, and the biology of nitric oxide synthases. Physiologic and pathophysiologic roles for endothelial cells in vascular smooth muscle cell physiology, vasodilatation, permeability, mechanosensation and mechanotransduction, leukocyte recruitment, and thrombosis have also been defined. Importantly, these mechanistic insights have led to more detailed understanding of how endothelial cells contribute to angiogenesis, lung and vascular development, tumor growth and metastasis, diabetes and insulin resistance, atherosclerosis, retinopathies, and the antiphospholipid syndrome.