Vaccarin promotes endothelial cell proliferation in association with neovascularization in vitro and in vivo

Angiogenesis is a major pathological component of several diseases, including traumatic vascular disease and coronary heart disease. The purpose of the present study was to determine the effects of vaccarin on endothelial cell migration and neovascularization, which are important and necessary components of wound healing. The present study investigated and confirmed neovascularization induced by vaccarin in vitro and in vivo. In vitro, the effects of vaccarin (1.08 and 2.15 μM) on proliferation, migration and tube formation of human microvascular endothelial cells (HMEC)-1 were evaluated via sulforhodamine B assay and migration and tube formation assay, respectively. Furthermore, a mouse Matrigel plus model was used to detect capillary-like tube structures in vivo. Immunohistochemistry was used to detect the protein expression of cluster of differentiation 31 (CD31), p-AKT and p-extracellular-signal-regulated kinases (Erk). Vaccarin significantly promoted HMEC-1 proliferation and migration and tube formation of HMEC-1 at a dose of 2.15 μM. In vivo, vaccarin delivered by daily oral administration significantly improved epidermal growth factor-induced angiogenesis in an intradermal inoculation mouse model. The mouse Matrigel model study also revealed that vaccarin significantly promoted neovascularization via detection of CD31 levels and enhanced protein expression of p-Akt and p-Erk. In addition, vaccarin also promoted expression of CD31.