VEGFA and Stroke: However, excessive VEGF expression and oxygen glucose deprivation (OGD) induce increased microvascular permeability which could further damage the blood brain barrier (BBB) (Kaur and Ling, 2008; Kunze and Marti, 2019), consequently resulting in expanded brain edema after stroke and neurological deterioration (Geiseler and Morland, 2018).