Vascular endothelial growth factor A, Fibroblast growth factor 1, and Fibroblast growth factor 2 (VEGF-A, FGF-1, FGF-2)

Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A (VEGF-A), Fibroblast Growth Factor 1 (FGF-1), and Fibroblast Growth Factor 2 (FGF-2) are secreted proteins that serve as master regulators of angiogenesis, vasculogenesis, and tissue repair. VEGF-A is the primary driver of endothelial cell proliferation and vascular permeability, acting through VEGFR-1 and VEGFR-2 receptors (UniProt: P15692). FGF-1 (acidic) and FGF-2 (basic) are potent mitogens for a wide range of cells, including endothelial cells and fibroblasts, signaling through the FGFR family of receptors (UniProt: P05230, P09038). In many cancers, these factors are overexpressed to facilitate tumor blood supply; FGF signaling specifically has been identified as a key bypass mechanism that allows tumors to maintain angiogenesis when VEGF pathways are inhibited (PubMed: 16369534). Consequently, multi-target tyrosine kinase inhibitors like nintedanib and lenvatinib are designed to block both VEGFR and FGFR signaling to overcome this resistance and suppress tumor growth more effectively (PubChem: 135450548, 9823820). These pathways are also therapeutic targets in exudative age-related macular degeneration and various fibrotic diseases (StatPearls: NBK470210).

Other names

Vascular permeability factorVPFAcidic fibroblast growth factorHBGF-1Basic fibroblast growth factorHBGF-2Prostatropin

Inhibition of receptor tyrosine kinase signaling (VEGFR and FGFR) or neutralization of circulating ligands to prevent activation of pro-angiogenic pathways.