title: Bone marrow transplantation as an established approach for understanding the role of macrophages in atherosclerosis and the metabolic syndrome.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Bone marrow transplantation (BMT) technology is a firmly established tool for studying atherosclerosis. Only recently it is helping us to understand the inflammatory mechanisms leading to the development of obesity, insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes. Here we review the use of BMT as a tool for studying the metabolic syndrome.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Bone marrow-derived cells, and particularly monocytes and macrophages, have been a major subject in the study of atherogenesis, and they are highly amenable for research purposes because of their application in bone marrow transplantations. For example, the many pathways studied using BMT have helped unmask ABC transporters as the genes controlling reverse cholesterol transport and foam cell formation, as well as other genes like CCR2 and IκBα controlling leukocyte development, migration and activation. The invasion of leukocytes, not only in the vessel wall, but also in adipose tissue and liver, shares many common mechanisms relevant to atherosclerosis and metabolic diseases.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  BMT is an efficient and versatile tool for assessing the roles of specific genes that are restricted to hematopoietic cells, and especially the monocytes and macrophages in metabolic syndrome and its related pathologies.
authors.affiliation: Molecular Genetics, Medical Biology Section, Department of Pathology and Medical Biology, University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Marcela
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Aparicio-Vergara
authors.forename: Ronit
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Shiri-Sverdlov
authors.forename: Debby P Y
authors.initials: DP
authors.lastname: Koonen
authors.forename: Marten H
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Hofker
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D050197:Atherosclerosis / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D016026:Bone Marrow Transplantation / Q000379:methods*; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease / Q000235:genetics; D006801:Humans; D050356:Lipid Metabolism / Q000235:genetics; D008264:Macrophages / Q000378:metabolism*; D024821:Metabolic Syndrome / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D009000:Monocytes / Q000378:metabolism