Oxidized low density lipoprotein (ox-LDL) and its receptor, lectin-Like ox-LDL receptor-1 (LOX-1), play important roles in the development of endothelial injuries. Olmesartan can protect endothelial cells from the impairment caused by various pathological stimulations. In the present study we investigated whether olmesartan decreased the impairment of endothelial cells induced by ox-LDL by exerting its effects on LOX-1 both in vitro and in vivo. Incubation of cultured endothelial cells of neonatal rats with ox-LDL for 24 h or infusion of ox-LDL in mice for 3 weeks led to the remarkable impairment of endothelial cells, including increased lactate dehydrogenase synthesis, phosphorylation of p38 mitogen-activated protein kinases (p38 MAPK) and expression of apoptotic genes such as B-cell leukemia/lymphoma 2 (Bcl-2)-associated X protein (Bax) and caspase-3. Simultaneously, the cell vitality and expression of Bcl-2 gene were greatly reduced. All these effects, however, were significantly suppressed by the treatment with olmesartan. Furthermore, ox-LDL promoted up-regulation of LOX-1 expression either in cultured endothelial cells or in the aortas of mice, which was reversed with the administration of olmesartan. Our data indicated that olmesartan may attenuate the impairment of endothelial cell via down-regulation of the increased LOX-1 expression induced by ox-LDL.
Keywords: apoptosis; endothelial cells; lox-1 receptor; olmesartan; oxidized low density lipoprotein.