EGFL7 - Function

Function

Silencing (knockdown) of the egfl7 gene in the zebrafish inhibits vascular tubulogenesis and embryos have little or no blood circulation. They show pericardial oedema and haemorrhage. Their main blood vessels have no lumen. Although an initial gene inactivation report showed that mice which did not express egfl7 had various vascular defects, the observed phenotypes were later attributed to the concomitant inactivation of the miR-126 locus. To date, there is no phenotype associated with the loss of egfl7 in mice. Egfl7 knockout mice are phenotypically normal, viable and fertile, they have a normal vascular system. Over-expression of egfl7 specifically in endothelial cells in mice induces embryonic lethality with head haemorrhages, cardiac defects and head and yolk sac vasculature defects. In vitro, Egfl7 inhibits the formation of cord-like structure in embryonic bodies.