IIG Seminar - Chronic psychological stress and macrophage inflammation in atherosclerosis

Atherosclerosis is recognized as a chronic inflammatory disease of the arteries that initiates through normal protective functions of the innate immune system, but goes awry through the failure to resolve macrophage inflammation in the arterial plaques. Dr. Fisher ’ s laboratory has pioneered multiple mouse models in which to study inflammation resolution in atherosclerosis. He has collaborated with a number of colleagues to apply these models to study mechanisms by which certain conditions, such as diabetes, kidney disease, and obesity, increase cardiovascular risk through their interference with plaque macrophage inflammation resolution. Chronic psychological stress is another known additive risk factor, and in his seminar he will present a work in progress in which an established mouse model of this type of stress was combined with studies of lipid lowering in atherosclerotic mice, which normally induces plaque inflammation resolution. Before lipid lowering, mice were exposed to a behavioral stressor, then divided into groups of mice that responded or that were resilient to the stress. Control mice were those not exposed to stress but otherwise treated the same way. There were many differences among these groups in terms of the responses of plaque macrophages to lipid lowering at the histological, immune functioning, and molecular levels. These results will be presented and interpreted in the context of neuroimmunology.Air date: 2/21/2024 4:00:00 PM
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