Resveratrol ameliorates atherosclerosis induced by high-fat diet and LPS in ApoE -/- mice and inhibits the activation of CD4 + T cells

Atherosclerosis (AS), which characterized with the accumulation of lipids on the vessel wall, is the pathological basis of many cardiovascular diseases (CVD) and seriously threatens human health. Resveratrol (RES) has been reported to be benefit for AS treatment. This research aimed to observe the effects of RES on AS induced by high-fat diet (HFD) and LPS in ApoE mice and investigate the underlying mechanism. ApoE mice were fed with HFD companied with LPS to induce AS and RES was administrated for 20 weeks. Splenic CD4 T cells were cultured and treated with anti-CD3/CD28 together with LPS, and RES was added. Serum lipids and the atherosclerotic areas of aortas were detected. The activation of CD4 T cells were investigated both in vivo and in vitro and the expression of DNA methyltransferases (Dnmt) in CD4 T cells were measured. In vivo, administration of RES prevented HFD and LPS induced dysfunction of serum lipids including TC (total cholesterol), TG (triglyceride), LDL-C (low density lipoprotein cholesterol) and HDL-C (high density lipoprotein cholesterol), ameliorated the thickened coronary artery wall and decreased the areas of atherosclerotic lesion on aortas. Besides, RES decreased the number of CD4 T cells in peripheral blood, decreased the expression of CD25 and CD44, but not affected the expression of L-selectin (CD62L). In vitro, RES decreased the expression of Ki67, CD25 and CD44 in CD4 T cells. Moreover, RES increased the secretion of IL-2, IL-10 and TGF-β1, decreased IL-6. In addition, RES decreased both the mRNA and protein level of Dnmt1 and Dnmt3b in CD4 T cells. These results indicated that RES ameliorated AS induced by HFD companied with LPS in ApoE mice, inhibited the proliferation and activation of CD4 T cells and regulated the expression of Dnmt1 and Dnmt3b.