EXPRESSION PATTERN OF VASCULAR ENDOTHELIAL GROWTH FACTOR (VEGF) AND VON WILLEBRAND FACTOR (VWF) IN RELATION TO ANGIOGENESIS IN CANINE UTERUS

Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) stimulates endothelial cell propagation and is essential to angiogenesis.The uteri from female canines (n = 54) were presented to the teaching Veterinary and Clinical Complex, College of Veterinary Science, Ludhiana, for neutering and disease conditions, where ovariohysterectomy was performed.A strongly positive reaction for VEGF was observed in the endometrium and blood vessels of all three compartments of the uterus in the prepubertal, cyclical, and gravid uterus.The immunoreactivity of VEGF was cytoplasmic in nature; however, some extracellular reaction of VEGF was also observed, indicating its paracrine role.It was concluded that the localization of these proteins was higher in the epithelium and glands of pubertal and pregnant animals than in the prepubertal group.At the same time, the differential reactivity was observed in the uterus of diseased animals.Immunolocalization of VEGF and vWF revealed a positive linear correlation.Specifically, as VEGF expression increased, the number of vWF-positive blood vessels increased, and vice versa.