Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
---|---|---|---|---|
8296976 | Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications | 2014 | 4 Pages |
Abstract
Varenicline is one of the most widely used drugs for smoking cessation. However, whether an adverse effect of varenicline is associated with the risk of serious cardiovascular events remains controversial. In this study, we determined if varenicline increases the risk of cardiovascular events using apolipoprotein E knockout (ApoE KO) mice. ApoE KO mice (8 weeks old) were injected with varenicline 0.5 mg kgâ1 dayâ1 for 3 weeks. Varenicline aggravated atherosclerotic plaque formation in whole aorta from ApoE KO mice compared with vehicle. Methyllycaconitine, an α7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (nAChR) antagonist, inhibited varenicline-induced aggravated plaque formation. Our findings show that varenicline progresses atherosclerotic plaque formation through α7 nAChR, and thereby increases the risk of cardiovascular events.
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Authors
Mitsuhisa Koga, Yuki Kanaoka, Yuma Ohkido, Naoka Kubo, Kaoru Ohishi, Keita Sugiyama, Atsushi Yamauchi, Yasufumi Kataoka,