Experimental research on inhibition of carotid artery atherosclerosis induced by endostatin gene mediated by ultrasound targeted microbubble destruction in rabbits

Abstract

Objective To explore the inhibition effect on angiogenesis and plaque growth of carotid atherosclerosis by transfection of endostatin gene using microbubbles combined with ultrasound exposure.Methods Twenty rabbit models of carotid atherosclerosis were randomly divided into 3 groups:group A,microbubble+ ultrasound; group B, control plasmid + microbubble + ultrsound; group C, ES plasmid +microbubble+ ultrasound. Two weeks after surgery, ultrasound/microbubble mediated gene transfer was performed,and it was performed once again three weeks after the first transfection. Ultrasonography and digital subtraction angiography(DSA) were performed at the time of 14 weeks. The carotid arteries were taken to detect the neointima and angiogenesis, and the expression of endostatin was detected using pathological means. Results The imagings of ultrasound showed that the intima in group A and B were thick significantly with larger plaques, and the lumen became stenosis with the peak systolic velocity increasing,however,in group C,the parameters mentioned above were significantly less than those of group A and B ( P＜0.05). Pathological results displayed that intima-media thickness (IMT), intima thickness (IT), intima thickness/media thickness (IT/MT), intima area (IA), intima area/media area (IA/MA) and neointimal stenosis rates were greater in group A and B, however, they were less in group C ( P＜0.05).The number of neovascularization and vascular endothelial growth factor(VEGF) expression in group A and B were more than those of group C. There was more endostatin positive expression in carotid arteries and anterior tibial muscles of group C, while there was nearly no expression in group A and B. Conclusions Under the conditioned ultrasonic irradiation, ultrasound/microbubble mediated endostatin gene transfection can inhibit the development of carotid atherosclerosis in rabbits, which might provide a safe and effective strategy for gene therapy of atherosclerotic disease in future. Key words: Ultrasonography; Microbubbls ; Atherosclerosis ; Gene therapy; Endostatins