title: [Atorvastatin inhibits platelet aggregation and activation following carotid balloon injury in cholesterol-fed rabbits].
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate the effect of atorvastatin on platelet aggregation and activation in the acute phase following balloon-induced carotid artery injury in rabbits fed cholesterol-enriched diet.
  
  
  METHODS
  Thirty rabbits were randomly divided into 5 equal groups, namely control group, high-cholesterol group, model group, low-dose (5 mg/kg daily) atorvastatin group, and high-dose (10 mg/kg daily) atorvastatin group. Platelet aggregation rate was measured in the rabbits by turbidimetric platelet aggregometry, and the changes of serum P-selectin and thromboxane B2 (TXB2) levels were detected with enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Compared with those in the control group, serum P-selectin level increased significantly (P<0.01) but platelet aggregation rate and TXB2 level exhibited no obvious changes in high-cholesterol group. After carotid artery balloon injury, P-selectin and TXB2 levels and platelet aggregation significantly increased in cholesterol-fed rabbits, reaching the peak level at 24 h after the injury (P<0.01). Compared with the model group, low-dose atorvastatin treatment significantly decreased P-selectin and TXB2 levels and inhibited platelet aggregation in cholesterol-fed rabbits following carotid artery balloon injury (P<0.01), and such effects of atorvastatin were more prominent at a higher daily dose of 10 mg/kg (P<0.05).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Carotid artery balloon injury in rabbits fed cholesterol-enriched diet can induce platelet activation and aggregation, which reaches the peak level at 24 h after balloon injury and can be dose-dependently inhibited by atorvastatin in the acute phase following the injury.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, Third Affiliated Hospital of Fujian Medical University, Fuzhou 350108, China.E-mail: yingzi8635@126.com.
authors.forename: Baowen
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Tong
authors.forename: Zhihong
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Lin
authors.forename: Liangdi
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Xie
authors.forename: Changsheng
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Xu
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000069059:Atorvastatin; D001792:Blood Platelets; D020212:Carotid Artery Injuries / Q000188:drug therapy*; D002784:Cholesterol; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D006538:Heptanoic Acids / Q000494:pharmacology*; D019007:P-Selectin / Q000378:metabolism; D015539:Platelet Activation; D010974:Platelet Aggregation; D011758:Pyrroles / Q000494:pharmacology*; D011817:Rabbits; D013929:Thromboxane B2 / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D006538:Heptanoic Acids; D019007:P-Selectin; D011758:Pyrroles; D013929:Thromboxane B2; D002784:Cholesterol; D000069059:Atorvastatin