new insights into vegf-a alternative splicing: key regulatory switching in the pathological process

vascular endothelial growth factor (vegf-a) is one of the most important regulatory factors in pathological and physiological angiogenesis. alternative splicing is a complicated molecular process in vegf-a gene expression which adds complexity to vegf-a biology. among all vegf-a exons, alternative splicing of exon 8 is the key determinant of isoform switching from pro-angiogenic vegf-xxx to anti-angiogenic vegf-xxxb. this is known as a key molecular switching in many pathological situations. in fact, the balance between vegf-xxx and vegf-xxxb isoforms is a critical controlling switch in both conditions of health and disease. here, the properties of vegf-xxx and vegf-xxxb isoforms were discussed and their regulatory mechanism and their roles in certain pathological processes were evaluated. in summary, it was suggested that c-terminal vegf-a alternative splicing can provide a new treatment opportunity in angiogenic diseases.