Blocking the activity of CTGF is capable of preventing the development of early-stage atherosclerosis in rat carotid artery [Siçan karotis arterinde erken-evre atherosklerozu önlemede baǧ dokusu büyüme faktörü aktivitesinin blokaji]

Background: although connective tissue growth factor (ctgf) has been demonstrated to contribute to the formation of atherosclerotic plaques,its divergent effects on atherosclerosis have been proposed. it is unclear if blocking the activity of ctgf may prevent the development of atherosclerosis. methods: we established a rat carotid artery atherosclerotic model which recapitulates the early-stage atherosclerotic lesion and highly expresses ctgf. we blocked ctgf expression in atherosclerotic lesion by injecting a neutralizing anti-ctgf antibody and knocked-down ctgf expression in vascular smooth muscle cells (vsmcs) using a ctgf sirna. results: blocking the activity of ctgf extensively prevented the increase in arterial stenosis rate,intima area,and tunica media,along with significant suppression of mmp-2,mmp-9,and phospho-akt proteins in the areas of atherosclerotic lesions. ctgf sirna suppressed the growth and migration of vsmcs in vitro. conclusions: ctgf contributes significantly to the development of early-stage atherosclerosis. blocking the activity of ctgf is capable of preventing the development of early-stage atherosclerosis through a mechanism involving the inactivation of akt and suppression of mmp-2 and mmp-9. our result suggests a novel strategy to the prevention of atherosclerosis.