Searching for markers to identify angiogenic endothelial cells: a proteomic approach.

In the field of angiogenesis research considerable effort is put in the development of in vitro assays of angiogenesis to replace animal experiments. Unfortunately, reproducibility of these assays frequently fails depending on the particular batch of endothelial cells delivered by the distributor. This is due to the lack of reliable markers for the identification and isolation of angiogenic microvascular endothelial cells that have the capacity to perform all stages of the angiogenic cascade.