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Lymphatic Vessels in Health and Disease

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Translational Vascular Medicine

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Abstract

The difficulty to recognize lymphatic vessels in common histological sections, particularly when they are collapsed, as they very often do, has long hampered research on lymphatics in spite of their universally accepted importance in tissue homeostasis, inflammation, immunity, and tumor spreading. The only positive identification criteria were the ultrastructural detection of a discontinuous basement membrane and anchoring filaments. Two recent discoveries have dramatically changed the interest of the scientific community in this long neglected field: the discovery of lymphatic-specific growth factors (vascular endothelial growth factor C and D) and the discovery of lymphatic markers (vascular endothelial growth factor receptor 3, Lyve-1, Prox1, and podoplanin). The role of lymphatics in several pathological conditions has so been elucidated, opening the possibility of new therapeutic strategies.

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Acknowledgments

We wish to thank D.J. Abraham, C.P. Denton, K. Khan (UCL Medical School, London), E.A. Renzoni (Royal Brompton Hospital, London), and P. Sestini (University of Siena) for their collaboration in the study of lymphatic vessels in scleroderma skin.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Neuroscience, Molecular Medicine Section, University of Siena, Siena, Italy

    Elisabetta Weber, Francesca Sozio, Erica Gabbrielli & Antonella Rossi

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  1. Elisabetta Weber
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  2. Francesca Sozio
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  3. Erica Gabbrielli
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  4. Antonella Rossi
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Correspondence to Elisabetta Weber .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. University College London, Gower Street, London, WC1E 6BT, United Kingdom

    David Abraham

  2. The Royal Free & Univ College Med School, Gower Street, London, WC1E 6BT, United Kingdom

    Clive Handler

  3. University College London, Gower Street, London, WC1E 6BT, United Kingdom

    Michael Dashwood

  4. The Royal Free & Univ College Med School, Gower Street, London, WC1E 6BT, United Kingdom

    Gerry Coghlan

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Weber, E., Sozio, F., Gabbrielli, E., Rossi, A. (2012). Lymphatic Vessels in Health and Disease. In: Abraham, D., Handler, C., Dashwood, M., Coghlan, G. (eds) Translational Vascular Medicine. Springer, London. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-85729-920-8_9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-85729-920-8_9

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