DC electric stimulation upregulates angiogenic factors in endothelial cells through activation of VEGF receptors

Small direct current (DC) electric fields direct some important angiogenic responses of vascular endothelial cells. Those responses indicate promising use of electric fields to modulate angiogenesis. We sought to determine the regulation of electric fields on transcription and expression of a serial of import angiogenic factors by endothelial cells themselves. Using semi-quantitative PCR and ELISA we found that electric stimulation upregulates the levels of mRNAs and proteins of a number of angiogenic proteins, most importantly VEGF165, VEGF121 and IL-8 in human endothelial cells. The up-regulation of mRNA levels might be specific, as the mRNA encoding bFGF, TGF-beta and eNOS are not affected by DC electric stimulation at 24h time-point. Inhibition of VEGF receptor (VEGFR1 or VEGFR2) signaling significantly decreased VEGF production and completely abolished IL-8 production. DC electric stimulation selectively regulates production of some growth factors and cytokines important for angiogenesis through a feed-back loop mediated by VEGF receptors.