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Updated: Aug 3, 2026
The Rabbit Model of Accelerated Atherosclerosis: A Methodological Perspective of the Iliac Artery Balloon Injury
Published on: October 3, 2017
Effect of green tea on angiogenesis and severity of atherosclerosis in cholesterol-fed rabbit
N Kavantzas1, A Chatziioannou, A E Yanni
1Department of Pathology, School of Medicine, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 75 Mikras Asias str. Goudi-Athens GR-11527, Greece.
Background And Aims:
Since the development of the atherosclerotic plaque requires the growth of new microvessels in the plaque itself (vasa vasorum), we postulated that green tea may exert an anti-atherogenic effect.
Methods And Results:
Thirteen male New Zealand white rabbits were studied for 17 weeks. All rabbits were fed an hypecholesterolemic diet. After 2 weeks of adaptation rabbits were randomly assigned into two groups. Animals in Group A were fed the hypercholesterolemic diet and received plain tap water ad libitum. Animals in Group B were fed with the same diet and furthermore received 2.5% (g/g) green tea for 17 weeks.
Conclusion:
According to our results the atherosclerotic lesions were more severe in Group B than in Group A specimens. Also, the number of VEGF positively stained foam cells and smooth muscle cells of Group B were significantly greater than in Group A. About 30% less plaque was found in Group A than in the control group (Group B). So, our study showed that the consumption of green tea leads to a reduction of atherosclerosis as well as a significant decrease of VEGF expression in the atherosclerotic plaque of rabbit aorta. The hypothesis that probably green tea may produce its anti-atherogenetic effect through an anti-angiogenetic mechanism needs more investigation.
