An angiogenic role for the aryl hydrocarbon receptor in choroidal neovascularization

We report that decreased expression and activity of AhR exacerbates murine neovascular age-related macular degeneration, and increases cell migration and tube formation. The mechanism involves increased expression of pro-angiogenic mediators and altered matrix degradation. The results of our study suggest that the AhR signaling pathway may be important in multiple AMD related pathways. Overall design: Gene expression analysis in the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE)-choroid tissue from AhR knockout mice contrasted against wild-type age-matched controls.

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Choudhary M, Kazmin D, Hu P, Thomas RS, McDonnell DP, Malek G