Leukotrienes: Novel targets for vascular disease.
Extract: Atherosclerosis is a chronic disease of the large arteries and the primary cause of heart attacks and stroke. It is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in the Western world and accounts for 50% of all deaths. According to a recent Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC, Atlanta, GA) survey, atherosclerosis has now become the single largest cause of death worldwide at 33%, replacing infectious diseases as the developing countries become more prosperous. Among the many risk factors, increased serum cholesterol carried by low-density lipoproteins (LDL), especially in oxidized LDL, is the single greatest contributing factor in the development of the disease. However, atherosclerosis is now recognized as an inflammatory vascular disease, but the molecular events involved in the initiation and development of the disease are still largely unknown. Recruitment of monocytes to specific sites in the arterial wall may be the initiating step, followed by the uptake of oxidized LDL by these monocytes, leading to their conversion into lipid-laden foam cells.
Haribabu
Bodduluri
B
James Graham Brown Cancer Center and the Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Louisville Health Sciences Center, 580 South Preston Street, Louisville, KY 40202, USA.