Dissertation
Macrophage activation and cholesterol accumulation in atherosclerosis development
Promotores: Prof. Dr. Th.J.C. van Berkel, Prof. Dr. M. van Eck
- Author
- Erik van Kampen
- Date
- 08 January 2015
- Links
- Thesis in Leiden Repository
Current therapies for patients with atherosclerosis are targeted primarily on reducing blood cholesterol, but this fails to prevent a large number of cardiovascular events.95 In order to identify new therapeutic strategies for treating atherosclerosis, it is important to study the interactions between the cells that make up the atherosclerotic lesion. This thesis describes the role of endothelial cells and macrophages during lesion formation, as well as the expression patterns of sterol sensors in vascular smooth muscle cells present in the lesion. These new insights contribute to our understanding of atherosclerosis open up new avenues of atherosclerosis research.