ArticleBioscience reports2021
Reduction of TMAO level enhances the stability of carotid atherosclerotic plaque through promoting macrophage M2 polarization and efferocytosis.
Article in Bioscience reports, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 20 papers.
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Who cites it
20 citing papers in PubMed, 35 citations in OpenAlex.
- The TMAO Metabolic Axis in Vascular Disease: A Position Paper on Redox Mechanisms and Priorities for Clinical Translation.Antioxidants (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Metabolic Perspective on Atherosclerosis: Macrophage Reprogramming and Novel Therapeutic Targets.Journal of the American Heart Association · 2026Review
- Gut microbiota-derived metabolites as immune modulators in aging and age-related chronic inflammatory diseases.Ageing research reviews · 2026Review
- Gut Microbiota and Atherosclerosis: Integrative Multi-Omics and Mechanistic Insights.Current atherosclerosis reports · 2025Review
- Circadian rhythms of gut microbiota and plaque vulnerability: mechanisms and chrono-microbiota modulation interventions.Gut microbes · 2025Review
- The Metabolite Indole-3-Acetic Acid of Bacteroides Ovatus Improves Atherosclerosis by Restoring the Polarisation Balance of M1/M2 Macrophages and Inhibiting Inflammation.Advanced science (Weinheim, Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany) · 2025Article
- The gut microbiota in thrombosis.Nature reviews. Cardiology · 2025Review
- Single-Cell Data and Weighted Correlation Network Analysis Revealed the Regulatory Mechanisms of Macrophages in Carotid Plaques.Journal of immunology research · 2025Article
- Gut Microbiome and Carotid Artery Intima-Media Thickness: A Narrative Review of the Current Scenario.Diagnostics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Review
- Review
- High-fat-diet-induced obesity promotes simultaneous progression of lung cancer and atherosclerosis in apolipoprotein E-knockout mice.Cancer innovation · 2024Article
- The Interplay Between Dietary Choline and Cardiometabolic Disorders: A Review of Current Evidence.Current nutrition reports · 2024Review
- The roles of trimethylamine-N-oxide in atherosclerosis and its potential therapeutic aspect: A literature review.Biomolecules & biomedicine · 2023Review
- Gut Molecules in Cardiometabolic Diseases: The Mechanisms behind the Story.International journal of molecular sciences · 2023Review
- Stilbene-based derivatives as potential inhibitors of trimethylamine (TMA)-lyase affect gut microbiota in coronary heart disease.Food science & nutrition · 2023Review
- Targeting gut microbiota and immune crosstalk: potential mechanisms of natural products in the treatment of atherosclerosis.Frontiers in pharmacology · 2023Review
- Analysis of gut microbiota in patients with acute myocardial infarction by 16S rRNA sequencing.Annals of translational medicine · 2022Article
- Serum Trimethylamine N-Oxide Levels Correlate with Metabolic Syndrome in Coronary Artery Disease Patients.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2022Article
- A potential therapeutic target in traditional Chinese medicine for ulcerative colitis: Macrophage polarization.Frontiers in pharmacology · 2022Review
- Implications of trimethylamine N-oxide (TMAO) and Betaine in Human Health: Beyond Being Osmoprotective Compounds.Frontiers in molecular biosciences · 2022Review
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
5 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
It has been demonstrated that trimethylamine N-oxide (TMAO) serves as a driver of atherosclerosis, suggesting that reduction of TMAO level might be a potent method to prevent the progression of atherosclerosis. Herein, we explored the role of TMAO in the stability of carotid atherosclerotic plaques and disclosed the underlying mechanisms. The unstable carotid artery plaque models were established in C57/BL6 mice. L-carnitine (LCA) and methimazole (MMI) administration were applied to increase and reduce TMAO levels. Hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) staining, Sirius red, Perl's staining, Masson trichrome staining and immunohistochemical staining with CD68 staining were used for histopathology analysis of the carotid artery plaque. M1 and M2 macrophagocyte markers were assessed by RT-PCR to determine the polarization of RAW264.7 cells. MMI administration for 2 weeks significantly decreased the plaque area, increased the thickness of the fibrous cap and reduced the size of the necrotic lipid cores, whereas 5-week of administration of MMI induced intraplate hemorrhage. LCA treatment further deteriorated the carotid atherosclerotic plaque but with no significant difference. In mechanism, we found that TMAO treatment impaired the M2 polarization and efferocytosis of RAW264.7 cells with no obvious effect on the M1 polarization. In conclusion, the present study demonstrated that TMAO reduction enhanced the stability of carotid atherosclerotic plaque through promoting macrophage M2 polarization and efferocytosis.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.