Placental growth factor (PGF) (PGF)

Placental growth factor (PGF) is a member of the vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) family that plays a critical role in angiogenesis and vasculogenesis, particularly under pathological conditions [2, 11]. Unlike VEGF-A, PGF binds specifically to the VEGFR-1 (Flt-1) receptor and neuropilins, but not to VEGFR-2 [1, 7]. It functions by promoting the proliferation and migration of endothelial cells and by enhancing the activity of VEGF-A through the displacement of VEGF-A from VEGFR-1, making more VEGF-A available for VEGFR-2 signaling [3, 7]. PGF is highly expressed in the placenta during pregnancy and is also upregulated in various cancers, where it contributes to tumor neovascularization and inflammation [1, 2, 11]. In clinical practice, PGF is a significant biomarker for preeclampsia, where low serum levels are indicative of placental dysfunction [4, 7, 10]. Therapeutically, PGF is targeted by decoy receptors like aflibercept to treat conditions such as age-related macular degeneration and certain metastatic cancers [1, 9]. This targeting offers a way to inhibit pathological blood vessel growth while potentially overcoming resistance to traditional anti-VEGF-A therapies [1, 7]. PGF also plays a role in cardiovascular repair and inflammatory cell recruitment, making it a multifaceted target in vascular biology [3, 7].

Other names

PLGFPIGFPGFLD12S1900SHGC-10760Placenta growth factor

Decoy receptor; VEGF receptor antagonist; Angiogenesis inhibitor