Human Acyl-CoA：cholesterol Acyltransferase （ACAT） and its Potential as a Target for Pharmaceutical Intervention against Atherosclerosis

Acyl-CoA:cholesterol acyltransferase (ACAT) catalyzes the formation of cholesteryl estersfrom cholesterol and long-chain fatty-acyl-coenzyme A.At the single-cell level,ACAT serves as a regulatorof intracellular cholesterol homeostasis.In addition,ACAT supplies cholesteryl esters for lipoproteinassembly in the liver and small intestine.Under pathological conditions,the accumulation of cholesterylesters produced by ACAT in macrophages contributes to foam cell formation,a hallmark of the earlystage of atherosclerosis.Several reviews addressing various aspects of ACAT and ACAT inhibitors areavailable [1-8].This review briefly outlines the current knowledge on the biochemical properties of humanACATs,and then focuses on discussing the merit of ACAT as a drug target for pharmaceutical interventionsagainst atherosclerosis.     

巨噬源性泡沫细胞形成过程中的机理研究及其进展

巨噬源性泡沫细胞的形成是动脉粥样病变的关键环节,清道夫受体与胆固醇代谢相关受体在此过程中发挥极其重要的作用。下面就泡沫细胞形成过程中的关键因素及机理做如下综述,并探讨通过调节这些潜在因素和机理,开发靶向药物治疗方法,有效抑制动脉粥样硬化的发生发展。