Angiogenesis requires coordinated endothelial cell specification, proliferation, and collective migration. The orientation of endothelial cell division is tightly regulated during the earliest stages of blood vessel formation in response to morphogenetic cues and the controlled orientation of the mitotic spindle. Consequently, oriented cell division is a vital mechanism in vessel morphogenesis, and defective spindle orientation can perturb the spatial arrangement of daughter cells and consequently contribute to several diseases related to vascular development. Many factors affect endothelial cell proliferation and orientation and therefore blood vessel formation, with the relationship between improper spindle orientation in endothelial cells and various diseases extensively studied. Here we review the molecular mechanisms driving the orientation of endothelial cell division, particularly with respect to the mitotic spindle, and how these processes affect vascular development, disease pathogenesis, and their potential as novel targets.

血管生成需要协调的内皮细胞规格，增殖和集体迁移。在形态形成线索和有丝分裂纺锤体的受控方向的响应中，内皮细胞分裂的方向在血管形成的最早阶段受到严格调节。因此，定向细胞分裂是血管形态发生的重要机制，纺锤定向缺陷会干扰子细胞的空间排列，从而导致多种与血管发育有关的疾病。许多因素影响内皮细胞的增殖和方向，进而影响血管的形成，内皮细胞的纺锤体定向不正确与各种疾病之间的关系也得到了广泛研究。