Authors: Janna A van Diepen Kathrin Thiem Rinke Stienstra Niels P Riksen Cees J Tack Mihai G Netea
Publish Date: 2016/07/28
Volume: 73, Issue: 24, Pages: 4675-4684
Abstract
Diabetes strongly predisposes to cardiovascular disease CVD the leading cause of mortality in these patients as well as in the entire population Hyperglycemia is an important cardiovascular risk factor as shown by the observation that even transient periods of hyperglycemia despite return to normoglycemia during followup increase the risk for CVD a phenomenon termed ‘hyperglycemic memory’ The molecular mechanisms underlying this phenomenon remain largely unknown As inflammation plays an important role in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis we propose that longterm functional reprogramming of monocytes and macrophages induced by hyperglycemia plays an important role in the phenomenon of hyperglycemic memory leading to cardiovascular complications in patients with diabetes In this review we discuss recent insights showing that innate immune cells possess the capacity to reprogram their function through epigenetically mediated rewiring of gene transcription a process termed ‘trained immunity’ The longterm reprogramming of monocytes can be induced by microbial as well as metabolic products and involves a shift in cellular metabolism from oxidative phosphorylation to aerobic glycolysis We hypothesize that hyperglycemia in diabetes patients induces longterm activation of monocytes and macrophages through similar mechanisms thereby contributing to plaque development and subsequent macrovascular complications
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