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. 2020 Oct 19;78(4):1329–1354. doi: 10.1007/s00018-020-03664-y

Fig. 4.

Fig. 4

Consequences of ERK and p21 activation in aged blood vessels. In quiescent vessels of young individuals, p21 expression and transient ERK activation occur only sporadically in ECs as quiescence is maintained independently of p21. With progressing age, p21-positive cells having ERK constitutively activated accumulate in blood vessels. This senescent phenotype promotes a pro-inflammatory and pro-thrombotic environment in the endothelium, impairs vasodilation, and leads to dysfunctional angiogenesis