Recent research has found that thymidine phosphorylase is also involved in angiogenesis. Experiments show inhibition of angiogenic effect by thymidine phosphorylase in the presence of 6-amino-5-chlorouracil, an inhibitor of thymidine phosphorylase, suggesting that the enzymatic activity of thymidine phosphorylase is required for its angiogenic activity. Thymidine phosphorylase has been determined to be almost identical to the platelet-derived endothelial cell growth factor (PD-ECGF). Although the mechanism of angiogenesis by thymidine phosphorylase is not yet known, reports show that the enzyme itself is not a growth factor but indirectly causes angiogenesis by stimulating chemotaxis of endothelial and other cells. Some reports suggest that thymidine phosphorylase promotes endothelial cell growth by reducing levels of thymidine that would otherwise inhibit endothelial cell growth. An alternative explanation is that the enzyme’s products induce angiogenesis. Experiments have found that 2-deoxyribose is an endothelial-cell chemoattractant and angiogenesis-inducing factor, which supports this explanation.Research has found thymidine phosphorylase is involved in angiogenesis during the menstrual cycle. The enzyme's expression in the endometrium is raised by a combination of progesterone and transforming growth factor-β1 and varies over the course of the menstrual cycle.