A Snake Venom-Secreted Phospholipase A Induces Foam Cell Formation Depending on the Activation of Factors Involved in Lipid Homeostasis.

MT-III, a snake venom GIIA sPLA, which shares structural and functional features with mammalian GIIA sPLAs, activates macrophage defense functions including lipid droplet (LDs) formation, organelle involved in both lipid metabolism and inflammatory processes. Macrophages (Ms) loaded with LDs, termed foam cells, characterize early blood vessel fatty-streak lesions during atherosclerosis. However, the factors involved in foam cell formation induced by a GIIA sPLA are still unknown.