Inhibitory role for GABA in atherosclerosis.
γ-Aminobutyric acid (GABA), the classical inhibitory neurotransmitter in the nervous system, has a parallel inhibitory role in the immune system. It affects a variety of functional properties of the immune cells like monocyte migration, macrophage cholesterol efflux, regulatory T cell proliferation and inflammatory cytokine secretion. All of these are the main pathologic processes of atherosclerosis, a chronic inflammatory disease involving both innate and adaptive immune responses in the artery wall. Moreover, GABA has neuroprotective effects in brain ischemic injury, which is one of the serious complications of atherosclerosis. Therefore, we hypothesize GABA may be a prospect immune cell targeting therapy in atherosclerosis.
Department of Cardiology, Union Hospital, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430022, China.
Ying
Y
Yang
Hui
H
Luo
Long-Xian
LX
Cheng
Kun
K
Liu
D050197:Atherosclerosis / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000276:immunology / Q000503:physiopathology*; D006801:Humans; D007155:Immunologic Factors / Q000494:pharmacology*; D007962:Leukocytes / Q000378:metabolism; D018448:Models, Immunological; D005680:gamma-Aminobutyric Acid / Q000276:immunology* / Q000494:pharmacology*
D007155:Immunologic Factors; D005680:gamma-Aminobutyric Acid