US scientists have identified a single gene that they believe plays a vital role in the development of atherosclerosis. The caveolin-1 (Cav-1) gene was found to promote the development of atherosclerotic lesions when switched on.
In mice with the Cav-1 gene which were fed a high-cholesterol diet for 12 weeks, the researchers noticed that they developed noticeable atherosclerotic plaques. However, in mice which lacked the gene, the number and size of atherosclerotic plaques in the aorta was much lower. The findings were published in the journal Cell Metabolism.
