Sonic Hedgehog Induces Arteriogenesis in Diabetic Vasa Nervorum and Restores Function in Diabetic Neuropathy

The embryonic morphogen sonic hedgehog (SHh) has been shown to induce neovascularization of ischemic tissue but has not been shown to play a role in regulating vascular nerve supply. Accordingly, we investigated the hypothesis that systemic injection of SHh protein could improve nerve blood flow and function in diabetic neuropathy (DN).Twelve weeks after induction of diabetes with streptozotocin, motor and sensory nerve conduction velocities...