[Relationship between oxysterols and atherosclerosis]

Oxysterols, being oxygenated derivatives of cholesterol, are as many kinds as one hundred. They are found in the foodstuffs, the blood and arterial tissues of animals with hypercholesterolemia, the human atheroma, the foam cell from atherosclerotic tissues, as well as in the oxidized low density lipoprotein. The results of experiments have demonstrated that oxysterols are cytotoxic and they are injurious to a variety of cells including vascular endothelial cells, smooth muscle cells and monocyte/macrophages, suggesting that oxysterols could play a key role in the initiation and pathogenesis of atherosclerosis.