Western diet depletes artery-protecting immune cells

  New research from scientists at the La Jolla Institute For Allergy and Immunology shows how a diet high in fat and cholesterol depletes the ranks of artery-protecting immune cells, turning them into promoters of inflammation, which exacerbate atherosclerotic plaque buildup that occurs in cardiovascular disease. The team has also found that high density lipoproteins (HDL) — more commonly known as “good cholesterol” — counteract this process, helping the protective immune cells maintain their identity and keep arteries clear. The study published March 15, 2018, in the journal Nature Communications was led by LJI scientists Dalia Gaddis, Ph.D., and Catherine Hedrick, Ph.D. Inflammation is a key contributor to the hardening and narrowing of the arteries known as atherosclerosis — a condition that can lead to heart attack or stroke. Hedrick’s lab is investigating the roles that immune cells play in this process and how the function of different immune cells can change as atherosclerosis progresses. “People think atherosclerosis is just about cholesterol, diet, and exercise, but it’s actually an immune disease,” says Dalia Gaddis, Ph.D., a postdoctoral researcher in Hedrick’s lab. “The blockage of arteries is very much due to the immune system reacting to excess cholesterol and lipids in the walls of blood vessels.” Different subsets of immune cells have opposing roles in atherosclerosis — some co...
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