title: Chungtaejeon, a Korean fermented tea, prevents the risk of atherosclerosis in rats fed a high-fat atherogenic diet.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Hypercholesterolemia is one of the well-established risk factors for cardiovascular mortality and morbidity in coronary heart disease. The aim of this study was to investigate the anti-atherogenic effect of Chungtaejeon (CTJ, a Korean fermented tea) aqueous extract on proliferation and migration of human aortic smooth muscle cells (HASMCs) in vivo and in vitro.
  
  
  METHODS
  The authors used high-fat atherogenic diet (HFAD) to induce hyperlipidemia in Wistar rats in in vivo animal experiments and used HASMCs for in vitro cell experiments. For the in vitro cell experiment, the proliferation of HASMCs was evaluated using the MTT assay. Similarly, the expression of matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) in HASMCs was measured using gelatin zymography. Antimigratory activity of CTJ was revealed using the wound-healing model and Boyden 's chamber assay. In the in vivo experiment, CTJ was administered in three different doses for 20 d from the initiation of the HFAD. After 20 d, the serum lipid profile and total lipid contents in liver were measured.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Treatment with CTJ for 24 h dose-dependently inhibited the proliferation and migration of HASMCs and expression of MMP-2 in HASMCs. The oral administration of CTJ at concentrations of 200 and 400 mg/kg decreased the levels of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, total serum cholesterol and hepatic cholesterol of HFAD-fed rats.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  CTJ possessed strong antiproliferative, antimigratory, as well as lipid-lowering activities. Thus, CTJ can be considered as a therapeutic option in the treatment of high-fat diet-induced atherosclerosis.
authors.affiliation: Department of Oriental Medicine Resources, Mokpo National University, Muan-gun, Jeonnam 534-729, South Korea.
authors.forename: Keshav Raj
authors.initials: KR
authors.lastname: Paudel
authors.affiliation: Department of Physics, Mokpo National University, Muan-gun, Jeonnam 534-729, South Korea.
authors.forename: Ung-Won
authors.initials: UW
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Department of Oriental Medicine Resources, Mokpo National University, Muan-gun, Jeonnam 534-729, South Korea.
authors.forename: Dong-Wook
authors.initials: DW
authors.lastname: Kim
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D050197:Atherosclerosis / Q000517:prevention & control*; D002465:Cell Movement / Q000187:drug effects; D049109:Cell Proliferation / Q000187:drug effects; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D004036:Diet, Atherogenic; D005285:Fermentation; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010936:Plant Extracts / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D013662:Tea
chemical_list: D010936:Plant Extracts; D013662:Tea