Novel cerebrovascular pathology in mice fed a high cholesterol diet.
BACKGROUND
Hypercholesterolemia causes atherosclerosis in medium to large sized arteries. Cholesterol is less known for affecting the microvasculature and has not been previously reported to induce microvascular pathology in the central nervous system (CNS).


RESULTS
Mice with a null mutation in the low-density lipoprotein receptor (LDLR) gene as well as C57BL/6J mice fed a high cholesterol diet developed a distinct microvascular pathology in the CNS that differs from cholesterol-induced atherosclerotic disease. Microvessel diameter was increased but microvascular density and length were not consistently affected. Degenerative changes and thickened vascular basement membranes were present ultrastructurally. The observed pathology shares features with the microvascular pathology of Alzheimer's disease (AD), including the presence of string-like vessels. Brain apolipoprotein E levels which have been previously found to be elevated in LDLR-/- mice were also increased in C57BL/6J mice fed a high cholesterol diet.


CONCLUSIONS
In addition to its effects as an inducer of atherosclerosis in medium to large sized arteries, hypercholesterolemia also induces a microvascular pathology in the CNS that shares features of the vascular pathology found in AD. These observations suggest that high cholesterol may induce microvascular disease in a range of CNS disorders including AD.
Department of Psychiatry, Mount Sinai School of Medicine, One Gustave L Levy Place, New York, NY 10029, USA. gregory.elder@mssm.edu.
Sonia
S
Franciosi
Miguel A
MA
Gama Sosa
Daniel F
DF
English
Elizabeth
E
Oler
Twethida
T
Oung
William Gm
WG
Janssen
Rita
R
De Gasperi
James
J
Schmeidler
Dara L
DL
Dickstein
Christoph
C
Schmitz
Sam
S
Gandy
Patrick R
PR
Hof
Joseph D
JD
Buxbaum
Gregory A
GA
Elder