NCKU research team reveals the link between obesity and arterial stiffness - The China Post
TAIPEI, Taiwan -- A National Cheng Kung University (NCKU) research team has discovered that obesity leads to a reduction in the protein lysyl oxidase (LOX), which accelerates aortic aging and stiffness, causing arteriosclerosis, and is a major threat to health, according to a NCKU press release yesterday.
Yau-Sheng Tsai of the NCKU Institute of Clinical Medicine led the team to investigate the pathophysiological link between arteriosclerosis and obesity. The study was published in a 2013 edition of the renowned journal Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis, and Vascular Biology, said the school.
Obesity is harmful to health, and increased aortic stiffness is a major cause of sudden death in many of patients suffering from cardiovascular disease, according to Tsai.
Blood vessel elasticity requires cross-linking between elastin, of which LOX is a key, he said.
Through experimentation, the team found that obesity leads to a decrease in LOX expression, which subsequently reduces elastin fiber strength and the level of cross-linkages. Consequently, it increases elastin fragmentation and elastolytic activity, said Tsai.
It was also noted that the aortas of obese mice were surrounded by a significant amount of pro-inflammatory and pro-oxidative perivascular adipose tissue. In vitro studies revealed that the conditioned medium from differentiated adipocytes or the perivascular adipose tissue of obese mice decreases LOX activity, according to Tsai.
Yau-Sheng Tsai of the NCKU Institute of Clinical Medicine led the team to investigate the pathophysiological link between arteriosclerosis and obesity. The study was published in a 2013 edition of the renowned journal Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis, and Vascular Biology, said the school.
Obesity is harmful to health, and increased aortic stiffness is a major cause of sudden death in many of patients suffering from cardiovascular disease, according to Tsai.
Blood vessel elasticity requires cross-linking between elastin, of which LOX is a key, he said.
Through experimentation, the team found that obesity leads to a decrease in LOX expression, which subsequently reduces elastin fiber strength and the level of cross-linkages. Consequently, it increases elastin fragmentation and elastolytic activity, said Tsai.
It was also noted that the aortas of obese mice were surrounded by a significant amount of pro-inflammatory and pro-oxidative perivascular adipose tissue. In vitro studies revealed that the conditioned medium from differentiated adipocytes or the perivascular adipose tissue of obese mice decreases LOX activity, according to Tsai.
Click Num:
Share
