Regression of Atherosclerosis

Abstract

Cardinal events in atherogenesis are the retention of apolipoprotein B–containing lipoproteins in the arterial wall and the reaction of macrophages to these particles. My laboratory has been interested in both the cell biological events producing apolipoprotein B–containing lipoproteins, as well as in the reversal of the damage they cause in the plaques formed in the arterial wall. In the 2013 George Lyman Duff Memorial Lecture, as summarized in this review, I covered 3 areas of my past, present, and future interests, namely, the regulation of hepatic very low density lipoprotein production by the degradation of apolipoprotein B100, the dynamic changes in macrophages in the regression of atherosclerosis, and the application of nanoparticles to both image and treat atherosclerotic plaques.