Update on selective treatments targeting neutrophilic inflammation in atherogenesis and atherothrombosis

摘要

Atherosclerosis is the most common pathological process underlying cardiovascular (CV) diseases, currently considered as the leading cause of mortality worldwide (1). This chronic and smouldering disorder of large- and medium-sized arteries is characterised by en-dothelium dysfunction followed by the trans-endothelial migration of immune cells and lipids from to circulation to the arterial wall where they accumulate, giving rise to atherosclerotic lesions covered by a fibrous cap mostly derived from vascular smooth muscle cells (2,3). Atherosclerotic plaques generally cause clinical manifestations either by provoking thrombi that can acutely interrupt the blood flow or embolise and lodge in distal arteries, or by producing flow-limiting stenosis that leads to tissue ischaemia (4).