Adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase induces cholesterol efflux from macrophage-derived foam cells and alleviates atherosclerosis in apolipoprotein E-deficient mice.

Adenosine Monophosphate Activated Protein Kinase Induces Cholesterol Efflux from Macrophage-Derived Foam Cells and Alleviates Atherosclerosis in Apolipoprotein E-Deficient Mice Running title: AMPK and cholesterol efflux from foam cells

Inactivation of the adenosine A2A receptor protects apolipoprotein E-deficient mice from atherosclerosis.

BACKGROUND Atherosclerosis is a chronic inflammatory disease of the arterial vessel wall. The A(2A) receptor (A(2A)R) plays a central role in many antiinflammatory effects of adenosine. However, the role of A(2A)R in atherosclerosis is not clear. METHODS AND RESULTS The knockout of A(2A)R in apolipoprotein E-deficient (Apoe(-/-)/A(2A)R(-/-)) mice led to an increase in body weight and levels o...

Inhibition of ERK1/2 and activation of LXR synergistically reduce atherosclerotic lesions in ApoE-deficient mice.

OBJECTIVE Activation of liver X receptor (LXR) inhibits atherosclerosis but induces hypertriglyceridemia. In vitro, it has been shown that mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase 1/2 (MEK1/2) inhibitor synergizes LXR ligand-induced macrophage ABCA1 expression and cholesterol efflux. In this study, we determined whether MEK1/2 (U0126) and LXR ligand (T0901317) can have a synergistic effect on th...

Salicylate improves macrophage cholesterol homeostasis via activation of Ampk.

Atherosclerosis stems from imbalances in lipid metabolism and leads to maladaptive inflammatory responses. The AMP-activated protein kinase (Ampk) is a highly conserved serine/threonine kinase that regulates many aspects of lipid and energy metabolism, although its specific role in controlling macrophage cholesterol homeostasis remains unclear. We sought to address this question by testing the ...

Transient Receptor Potential Ankyrin 1 Channel Involved in Atherosclerosis and Macrophage-Foam Cell Formation

Transient receptor potential ankyrin 1 channel (TRPA1) plays an important role in the pathogenesis of inflammatory diseases, yet its role and the underlying mechanism in atherosclerosis remain unclear. We aimed to investigate the role of TRPA1 in atherosclerosis and foam-cell formation in vivo in mice and in vitro in mouse macrophages. Histopathology was examined by hematoxylin and eosin staini...