VEGFA and Stroke: A three-phase paradigm for EE where the EE for rats was changed based on the three phases of stroke revealed changes to the ischemic microenvironment including significantly improved survival of cortical and striatal neurons, improved cerebral blood flow, decreased BBB damage, and increased angiogenesis via modified VEGF, Angiopoietin-1 and Angiopoietin-2 compared to standard housing rats [210].