Tag: atherosclerosis

Canagliflozin Alleviates Atherosclerosis Progression through Inflammation, Oxidative Stress, and Autophagy in Western Diet-fed ApoE −/− Mice

Announcing a new article publication for Cardiovascular Innovations and Applications journal. This study was aimed at investigating the effect of canagliflozin (Cana) on atherosclerosis and further exploring its potential mechanism. ApoE−/− mice were fed a Western diet (WD) and randomly divided into a WD group and WD+Cana group. After 15 weeks of canagliflozin treatment, serum levels of fasting insulin and inflammatory cytokines were determined with ELISA kits. HE, Oil Red O, and Masson staining were used to estimate the extent of atherosclerosis. Immunohistochemistry, immunofluorescence, ROS staining, and RT-PCR were used to further investigate Cana’s potential mechanism.

Histological analysis indicated that Cana restrained atherosclerotic plaque development. Furthermore, Cana decreased the percentage of F4/80 positive cells, and the areal density of ROS and relative fluorescence intensity of P62, but enhanced the relative fluorescence intensity of LC3 in the aortic root. Analysis of factors associated with the inflammatory response mediated by AP-1, oxidative stress mediated through the ROS/Nrf2 pathway, and autophagy in the aorta indicated elevated mRNA levels of F4/80, MCP-1, VCAM-1, AP-1, ROS, NOX4, P62, NLRP3, and IL-1β, but diminished mRNA levels of Nrf2, GST, eNOS, and LC3, in the WD+Cana group.

Canagliflozin may attenuate atherosclerosis by decreasing the inflammatory response mediated by AP-1, alleviating oxidative stress through the ROS/Nrf2 pathway, and enhancing autophagy in WD-fed ApoE−/− mice.

https://www.scienceopen.com/hosted-document?doi=10.15212/CVIA.2023.0093

CVIA is available on the ScienceOpen platform and at Cardiovascular Innovations and Applications. Submissions may be made using ScholarOne Manuscripts. There are no author submission or article processing fees. Cardiovascular Innovations and Applications is indexed in the EMBASE, EBSCO, ESCI, OCLC, Primo Central (Ex Libris), Sherpa Romeo, NISC (National Information Services Corporation), DOAJ, Index Copernicus, Research4Life and Ulrich’s web Databases. Follow CVIA on Twitter @CVIA_Journal; or Facebook.

Qingjuan Zuo, Lili He and Sai Ma et al. Canagliflozin Alleviates Atherosclerosis Progression through Inflammation, Oxidative Stress, and Autophagy in Western Diet-fed ApoE−/− Mice. CVIA. 2024. Vol. 9(1). DOI: 10.15212/CVIA.2023.0093

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Feasibility of an Integrated Digital and Pharmacological Approach Targeting Blood Lipids in Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Disease Management

Announcing a new article publication for Cardiovascular Innovations and Applications journal.     Strong evidence supports the importance of lipid-lowering and exercise therapies in the long-term therapy of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD). Establishing efficient comprehensive intervention programs that combine pharmacological and exercise prescription is crucial to investigate with the aid of digital technologies.

A convenience sample of 25 ASCVD patients (57.8 ± 9.5 years, 76% males) was gathered. All participants were prescribed with 12-week home exercise program supervised by an app and bimonthly 75mg alirocumab subcutaneous injections. Follow up visits were scheduled at the end of 4th and 12th week.

Nineteen participants completed the program with a retention rate of 76%. Sixteen (84.2%) participants received all six doses of alirocumab. The total management time of the 12-week program added up to 65.47 minutes per patient. Satisfaction score was 4.2 ± 0.6 and the User Version of the Mobile Application Rating Scale (uMARS) overall objective quality score on the app was 3.4 ± 0.7. At the 4-week and 12-week follow-ups, LDL-C levels reduced compared to baseline (−1.5 ± 0.8 mmol/L, P < 0.001, −1.6 ± 0.8 mmol/L, P < 0.001, respectively), along with TC (−1.8 ± 1.2 mmol/L, P < 0.001, −1.6 ± 1.3 mmol/L, P < 0.001, respectively), but not TG, HDL-C, GAD-7 and PHQ-9.

The integrated pharmaceutical and digital ERx intervention program was feasible and well accepted in ASCVD patients.

https://www.scienceopen.com/hosted-document?doi=10.15212/CVIA.2024.0002

CVIA is available on the ScienceOpen platform and at Cardiovascular Innovations and Applications. Submissions may be made using ScholarOne Manuscripts. There are no author submission or article processing fees. Cardiovascular Innovations and Applications is indexed in the EMBASE, EBSCO, ESCI, OCLC, Primo Central (Ex Libris), Sherpa Romeo, NISC (National Information Services Corporation), DOAJ, Index Copernicus, Research4Life and Ulrich’s web Databases. Follow CVIA on Twitter @CVIA_Journal; or Facebook.

Xu Yi, Qiu Weiyu and Li Yan et al. Feasibility of an Integrated Digital and Pharmacological Approach Targeting Blood Lipids in Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Disease Management. CVIA. 2024. Vol. 9(1). DOI: 10.15212/CVIA.2024.0002

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Gut Microbiota and Vascular Diseases: An Update

Announcing a new article publication for Cardiovascular Innovations and Applications journal.

Vascular diseases, including atherosclerosis, aneurysms, and vascular calcification, are a leading cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. In past decades, the gut microbiota has been found to be an indispensable population exerting effects on hosts under physiological and pathological conditions. Gut microbiota-derived metabolites, such as trimethylamine-N-oxide and short-chain fatty acids, mediate these effects by regulating vascular cells systematically. Translation of research knowledge to clinical scenarios has led to the development of new therapies including dietary interventions and metabolite inhibitors. This review describes recent advancements in understanding of the interplay between the gut microbiota and vascular dysfunction, and potential treatments for vascular diseases.

https://www.scienceopen.com/hosted-document?doi=10.15212/CVIA.2023.0090

CVIA is available on the ScienceOpen platform and at Cardiovascular Innovations and Applications. Submissions may be made using ScholarOne Manuscripts. There are no author submission or article processing fees. Cardiovascular Innovations and Applications is indexed in the EMBASE, EBSCO, ESCI, OCLC, Primo Central (Ex Libris), Sherpa Romeo, NISC (National Information Services Corporation), DOAJ, Index Copernicus, Research4Life and Ulrich’s web Databases. Follow CVIA on Twitter @CVIA_Journal; or Facebook.

Jiaqi Wu, Yuxuan Li and Peipei Yang et al. Gut Microbiota and Vascular Diseases: An Update. CVIA. 2024. Vol. 9(1). DOI: 10.15212/CVIA.2023.0090

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Immune Infiltration in Atherosclerosis is Mediated by Cuproptosis-Associated Ferroptosis Genes

Announcing a new article publication for Cardiovascular Innovations and Applications journal. In this study, the authors identify cuproptosis-associated ferroptosis genes in the atherosclerosis microarray of the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database and explored hub gene-mediated immune infiltration in atherosclerosis.

Immune infiltration plays a crucial role in atherosclerosis development. Ferroptosis is a mode of cell death caused by the iron-dependent accumulation of lipid peroxides. Cuproptosis is a recently discovered type of programmed cell death. No previous studies have examined the mechanism of cuproptosis-associated ferroptosis gene regulation in immune infiltration in atherosclerosis.

The qualified atherosclerosis gene microarray was researched in the GEO database, integrated with ferroptosis and cuproptosis genes, and calculated with the correlation coefficients. The authors then obtained the cuproptosis-associated ferroptosis gene matrix and screened differentially expressed genes. Subsequently, they performed Gene Ontology and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes enrichment analyses and protein–protein interaction network analysis of differentially expressed genes. The authors also screened hub genes according to the Matthews correlation coefficient (MCC) algorithm. The authors conducted enrichment analysis of hub genes to explore their functions and predict related microRNAs (P<0.05). The authors also used the single-sample gene set enrichment analysis (ssGSEA) algorithm to analyze the relationships between hub genes and immune infiltration, and used immune-associated hub genes to construct a risk model. Finally, the authors used the drug prediction results and molecular docking technology to explore potential therapeutic drugs targeting the hub genes.

Seventy-eight cuproptosis-associated ferroptosis genes were found to be involved in the cellular response to oxidative and chemical stress, and to be enriched in multiple pathways, including ferroptosis, glutathione metabolism, and atherosclerosis. Ten hub genes were identified with the MCC algorithm; according to the ssGSEA algorithm, these genes were closely associated with immune infiltration, thus indicating that cuproptosis-associated ferroptosis genes may participate in atherosclerosis by mediating immune infiltration. The receiver operating characteristic curve indicated that the model had a good ability to predict atherosclerosis risk. The results of drug prediction (adjusted P<0.001) and molecular docking showed that glutathione may be a potential therapeutic drug that targets the hub genes.

The conclusion was that cuproptosis-associated ferroptosis genes are associated with immune infiltration in atherosclerosis.

https://www.scienceopen.com/hosted-document?doi=10.15212/CVIA.2023.0003

CVIA is available on the ScienceOpen platform and at Cardiovascular Innovations and Applications. Submissions may be made using ScholarOne Manuscripts. There are no author submission or article processing fees. Cardiovascular Innovations and Applications is indexed in the EMBASE, EBSCO, ESCI, OCLC, Primo Central (Ex Libris), Sherpa Romeo, NISC (National Information Services Corporation), DOAJ, Index Copernicus, Research4Life and Ulrich’s web Databases. Follow CVIA on Twitter @CVIA_Journal; or Facebook.

Article reference: Boyu Zhang, Shuhan Li and Hanbing Liu et al. Immune Infiltration in Atherosclerosis is Mediated by Cuproptosis-Associated Ferroptosis Genes. CVIA. 2023. Vol. 7(1). DOI: 10.15212/CVIA.2023.0003

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