Macrophage deficiency of miR-21 promotes apoptosis, plaque necrosis, and vascular inflammation during atherogenesis.

ABSTRACT: Atherosclerosis, the major cause of cardiovascular disease, is a chronic inflammatory disease characterized by the accumulation of lipids and inflammatory cells in the artery wall. Aberrant expression of microRNAs has been implicated in the pathophysiological processes underlying the progression of atherosclerosis. Here, we define the contribution of miR-21 in hematopoietic cells during atherogenesis. Interestingly, we found that miR-21 is the most abundant miRNA in macrophages and its absence results in accelerated atherosclerosis, plaque necrosis, and vascular inflammation. miR-21 expression influences foam cell formation, sensitivity to ER-stress-induced apoptosis, and phagocytic clearance capacity. Mechanistically, we discovered that the absence of miR-21 in macrophages increases the e

SUBMITTER: Canfran-Duque A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5582411 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature