Role of Bone Morphogenetic Protein 4 in the Inflammation of the Myocardium and Vascular Tissue of Obese Mice.

Bone morphogenetic protein 4 (BMP4) is a proinflammatory factor. The expression of BMP4 is reduced in the adipose and enhanced in the myocardium and vascular during obesity. It is possibly involved in the process of inflammatory response of the myocardium and vascular.

[Knockdown of PCSK9 inhibits endothelial-to-mesenchymal transition of human aortic endothelial cells].

Objective To investigate the protective effect of proprotein convertase subtilisin/kexin type 9 (PCSK9) knockdown on endothelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EndoMT) induced by β glycerophosphate, dexamethasone, and L-ascorbic acid in human aortic endothelial cells (HAECs). Methods EndoMT model was established by inducing HAECs with (0, 10, 30, 50) mmol/L of β glycerophosphate combined with 100 nmol/L of dexamethasone and 50 μg/mL of L-ascorbic acid. HAECs were transfected with specific small interfering RNA of PCSK9 (si-PCSK9), and the mRNA and protein expression levels of PCSK9 in HAECs were detected by real-time quantitative PCR and Western blotting.