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Updated: Jun 19, 2026
09:41
Quantification of Monocyte Transmigration and Foam Cell Formation from Individuals with Chronic Inflammatory Conditions
Published on: October 17, 2017
Macrophage cholesteryl ester mobilization and atherosclerosis
Shobha Ghosh1, Bin Zhao, Jinghua Bie
1Department of Internal Medicine, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA 23298-0050, USA. shobha@vcu.edu
Vascular Pharmacology
|November 3, 2009
Summary
Neutral cholesteryl ester hydrolase (CEH) is crucial for macrophage foam cell cholesterol removal. Understanding CEH
Area of Science:
- Biochemistry
- Cell Biology
- Cardiovascular Research
Background:
- Macrophage foam cells, accumulating cholesteryl esters (CE) in lipid droplets, drive atherosclerotic plaque development.
- Mobilizing CE from macrophages requires hydrolysis to free cholesterol (FC) for efflux.
- This hydrolysis, catalyzed by neutral cholesteryl ester hydrolase (CEH), is vital for reverse cholesterol transport.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review controversies and candidates for macrophage CEH identity.
- To examine the role of CEH in CE mobilization and atherogenesis regulation.
- To discuss enzymatic challenges in targeting CEH for atherosclerosis treatment.
Main Methods:
- Literature review of CEH identity and function in macrophages.
- Analysis of biochemical characteristics of candidate CEH enzymes.
- Discussion of physiological requirements for lipid droplet hydrolysis.
Main Results:
- CEH activity is increasingly recognized as the rate-limiting step in FC efflux from macrophages.
- Identifying the precise CEH enzyme is critical for understanding its role in atherosclerosis.
- Complexities in interfacial catalysis impact CEH's efficiency.
Conclusions:
- CEH is a key regulator of reverse cholesterol transport and cholesterol elimination.
- Targeting CEH offers a potential therapeutic strategy to attenuate atherosclerosis.
- Further biochemical characterization of CEH candidates is essential for future drug development.
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