We have demonstrated previously that new blood vessel formation induced by angiogenic
growth factors in onplants placed on the chorioallantoic membrane (CAM) of the chick
embryos is critically dependent on the cleavage of fibrillar collagen by a previously
unidentified interstitial collagenase. In the present study we have used a quantitative CAM
angiogenesis system to search for and functionally characterize host avian collagenases
responsible for the collagen remodeling associated with angiogenesis. Among the matrix …