gamma2-msh and Glucose-Intolerance

Atherosclerosis is a chronic inflammatory disease of the arteries. The disease is initiated by endothelial dysfunction that allows the transport of leukocytes and low-density lipoprotein into the vessel wall forming atherosclerotic plaques. The melanocortin system is an endogenous peptide system that regulates, for example, energy homeostasis and cardiovascular function. Melanocortin treatment with endogenous or synthetic melanocortin peptides reduces body weight, protects the endothelium and alleviates vascular inflammation, but the long-term effects of melanocortin system activation on atheroprogression remain largely unknown. In this study, we evaluated the effects of transgenic melanocortin overexpression in a mouse model of atherosclerosis. Low-density lipoprotein receptor-deficient mice overexpressing alpha- and gamma

Topics: alpha-MSH; Animals; Aorta; Atherosclerosis; Cytokines; Diet, Western; Female; gamma-MSH; Gene Expression; Glucose Intolerance; Homeostasis; Immunohistochemistry; Inflammation; Male; Melanocortins; Mice; Mice, Knockout; Mice, Transgenic; Plaque, Atherosclerotic; Receptors, LDL; Vasoconstriction; Vasodilation