CASP3 and neoplasm: Tumor vessel morphology and functionality can be studied in different ways, for instance by the immunostaining of tumor sections for endothelial cell markers (CD31+, Tie-2+), alone or combined with markers for proliferation (PCNA+) or apoptosis (active caspase 3) that are used to identify proliferating or apoptotic endothelial cells, respectively. Tumor vessel coverage and stability can be investigated by combining endothelial cell staining with laminin or pericyte (α-SMA+) staining.