Efeito da lectina de folhas de Schinus terebinthifolia sobre a formação de vasos do saco vitelínico e morfologia de embriões de Coturnix japônica.

Abstract

Angiogenesis corresponds to the budding of new blood vessels starting from other preexisting ones. This process is of great importance for development of tumor cells. Schinus terebinthifolia (Brazilian Peppertree) leaves express a thermostable and antimicrobial lectin (SteLL). This work reports the effect of SteLL on the angiogenesis process using the in vivo model of yolk sac membrane of Coturnix japonica (Japanese quail) embryos. The fractal analysis by box counting and information dimension indicated that SteLL at 1.35 mg/mL reduced the angiogenesis of C. japonica yolk sac membrane. The inhibition of the vascular network formation in the yolk sac membrane resulted in decreased blood supply to the embryos, and consequently area, perimeter and percentage of cephalic length of embryos were significantly reduced in the group treated with SteLL, corroborating with the antiangiogenic activity. In conclusion, SteLL is an antiangiogenic agent and this result stimulate future investigations about its antitumor activity.