EphrinB2 controls vessel pruning through STAT1-JNK3 signalling

Angiogenesis produces primitive vascular networks that need pruning to yield hierarchically organized and functional vessels. Despite the critical importance of vessel pruning to vessel patterning and function, the mechanisms regulating this process are not clear. Here we show that EphrinB2, a well-known player in angiogenesis, is an essential regulator of endothelial cell death and vessel pruning. This regulation depends upon phosphotyrosine-EphrinB2 signalling repressing c-jun N-terminal kinase 3 activity via STAT1. JNK3 activation causes endothelial cell death. In the absence of JNK3, hyaloid vessel physiological pruning is impaired, associated with abnormal persistence of hyaloid vessel…