Publication Cover
Endothelium
Journal of Endothelial Cell Research
Volume 12, 2005 - Issue 5-6
32
Views
57
CrossRef citations to date
0
Altmetric
Regular Articles

Atorvastatin Affects Several Angiogenic Mediators in Human Endothelial Cells

, , , , , , , , & show all
Pages 233-241 | Received 25 Apr 2005, Accepted 05 Nov 2005, Published online: 13 Jul 2009
 

Abstract

The pleiotropic effects of statins, inhibitors of 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl–coenzyme A (HMG-CoA) reductase, have been recently extended to the modulation of angiogenesis. Here, to get more insight into the statins action, the authors have investigated the effect of atorvastatin on the expression of several angiogenic and inflammatory genes in human umbilical endothelial cells (HUVECs). Atorvastatin was proangiogenic at the dose of 10 nM, and antiangiogenic at the concentrations of 1 to 10 μ M. Moreover, these higher concentrations inhibited also the proliferation of HUVECs induced by vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). Lower doses of atorvastatin did not influence endothelial cell proliferation. Importantly, atorvastatin at the micromolar concentrations diminished the production of interleukin (IL)-8, a proinflammatory and proangiogenic chemokine, and inhibited the synthesis of urokinase plasminogen activator (uPA), a potent proinflammatory mediator. However, it decreased also the expression of plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 (PAI-1) and thrombospondin-1 (TSP-1), the inhibitors of angiogenesis. Atorvastatin stimulated the expression of angiopoietin (Ang)-2 and moderately enhanced the expression of endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS), whereas heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) was not significantly affected. In conclusion, the present findings points to other angiogenesis-related effects of atorvastatin, which may be of relevance to the beneficial influence of statins in cardiovascular system.

Log in via your institution

Log in to Taylor & Francis Online

There are no offers available at the current time.

Related Research

People also read lists articles that other readers of this article have read.

Recommended articles lists articles that we recommend and is powered by our AI driven recommendation engine.

Cited by lists all citing articles based on Crossref citations.
Articles with the Crossref icon will open in a new tab.