Apelin is the endogenous ligand of the G protein-coupled receptor APJ. Both Apelin and APJ receptor are widely distributed in various tissues such as heart, brain, limbs, retina and liver. Recent research indicates that the Apelin/APJ system plays an important role in pathological angiogenesis which is a progress of new blood branches developing from preexisting vessels via sprouting. In this paper, we review the important role of the Apelin/APJ system in pathological angiogenesis. The Apelin/APJ system promotes angiogenesis in myocardial infar...
