The body's weight loss mechanism while in a tumor-bearing state is still unclear. In this study, we investigated expressions of angiogenic factors in the adipose tissue of tumor-bearing and diet-restricted rabbits evaluating the differences between the two groups. We postulated that low nutrition induced vasculogenesis to transport nutrition in the adipose tissues of diet-restricted rabbits, unlike in tumor-bearing rabbits, and that vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and platelet-derived endothelial cell growth factor (PD-ECGF) were related to angiogenesis of the adipose tissues. Although we investigated the expressions of VEGF and PD-ECGF immunohistochemically in tumor-bearing and diet-restricted rabbits, there was no significant difference between the two groups. Whether angiogenesis of the adipose tissue in the diet-restricted animals may be observed during the nutritional recovery period should be investigated.

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