Related Experiment Video For Nicotine
Updated: Mar 29, 2026

Utilizing pHluorin-tagged Receptors to Monitor Subcellular Localization and Trafficking
Published on: March 16, 2017
Regulation of macrophage cholesterol efflux and liver X receptor α activation by nicotine
Hongming Zhang1, Xiaoyan Li1, Zongjie Qian2
1Department of Cardiology, The General Hospital of Jinan Military Region Jinan 250031, P. R. China.
Objective:
This study aims to investigate the characteristics of liver X receptor α (LXRα) and its target gene expression, as well as cholesterol efflux in human macrophages treated by nicotine.
Methods:
Human monocyte-derived macrophages were collected. Before apoA-I-mediated human monocyte-derived macrophage cholesterol efflux, and mRNA expression of LXRα, and some of its target genes being detected, the macrophages were induced with or without nicotine.
Results:
Pre-incubation of Human monocyte-derived macrophages with nicotine, cholesterol efflux was suppressed to apolipoprotein AI. Nicotine also inhibited LXRα and some of its target genes mRNA expression involved cholesterol metabolism, and facilitated some inflammatory genes expression.
Conclusion:
The changed function of cholesterol efflux and some genes expression may be the pathogenetic cause, and LXR activity of macrophage may offer potential therapeutic benefit in the treatment of atherosclerosis. Thus nicotine can regulate foam cell formation by inhibiting LXR pathway.
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