New Way Discovered to Block Inflammation
ScienceDaily covers a new discovery from the Moore Lab, which illuminates a novel “mechanism that triggers chronic inflammation in Alzheimer’s, atherosclerosis and type-2 diabetes” than previously suggested by earlier studies. Researchers previously believed cholesterol crystals and plaques accumulated outside the cell and inflammation was induced as macrophages attempted to clear the debris. Instead, the Moore Lab demonstrates that a receptor present on macrophages, CD36, binds and pulls soluble cholesterol and protein matter into the cell. The debris is transformed into insoluble crystals and amyloids, damaging the macrophage and triggering interleukin-1β, a cytokine associated with chronic inflammatory responses.
