IGF1 and Cerebral ischemia: Improved cognitive performance has also been linked to several growth factors whose expression is related to physical exercise, such as insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1), which promotes neuronal growth and improves cognitive performance, and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), which stimulates angiogenesis and vasculogenesis and promotes tolerance to cerebral ischemia (41, 42).