CONTEXT: While the inner fetal zone (FZ) of the midgestation human fetal adrenal (HFA) produces dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate, the function of the outer definitive zone (DZ) remains less clear. We have proposed that the DZ phenotype is that of a pool of progenitor cells, many of which are mitotically active. Recently we studied HFA expression of a family of vascular endothelial cell-specific angiogenic factors, the angiopoietins (Angs), and demonstrated that Ang2 was localized predominantly in the periphery of the gland. Ang1 stabilizes, while Ang2 destabilizes, vessels, increasing responsiveness to angiogenic stimuli such as vascular endothelial growth factor-A (VEGF-A) and fibroblast growth factor-2 (FGF-2).

OBJECTIVE: To test the hypothesis that the periphery of the HFA is a site of angiogenesis.

DESIGN: Studies were conducted involving RNA, frozen sections, and primary cell cultures from midgestation HFAs.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Immunofluorescence, laser-capture microdissection and real-time quantitative RT-PCR were used.

RESULTS: Double immunostaining demonstrated that proliferating endothelial cells were limited to the DZ and DZ/FZ border. Ang2 mRNA was primarily expressed in the DZ whereas Ang1 mRNA was primarily in the FZ. VEGF-A and FGF-2 mRNA levels were higher in the DZ. FGF-2 (10 ng/ml) induced Ang2 mRNA by 4-fold in both zones of cells (P < 0.01, at 24 h), but not Ang1 nor VEGF-A mRNA.

CONCLUSIONS: Data suggest that angiogenesis occurs at the periphery of the HFA. The DZ-predominant expression of Ang2 may be explained, in part, by the parallel pattern of FGF-2 expression.