Treatment of Peroxidase Derived from Foxtail Millet Bran Attenuates Atherosclerosis by Inhibition of CD36 and STAT3 in Vitro and in Vivo

Atherosclerosis is one of the main causes of cardiovascular diseases. Our previous study indicated that a type of peroxidase derived from foxtail millet bran (FMBP) had prominent antitumor activities. In the present study, we found that FMBP had potential antiatherosclerosis effects. The results showed that FMBP treatment strongly suppressed lipid phagocytosis in both HASMCs and THP-1 cells by 52% and 49%, respectively. Further, FMBP significantly inhibited HASMCs migration by promoting transformation of HASMCs from synthetic to contractile, leading to the decrease of lipid phagocytosis. Simultaneously, FMBP repressed lipid uptake by reducing the expression of CD36 in THP-1 cells. In addition, FMBP reduced the secretion of inflammatory factor IL-1β by inhibiting the expression of STAT3 in THP-1 cells. Interestingly, FMBP also had the same effects in models of atherosclerosis constructed with ApoE–/– mice, including decreased aortic lesion area, repressed aortic sinus CD36 and STAT3 expression, and elevated serum HDL-C concentration. Collectively, these results indicate that FMBP has great potential in preventing the development of atherosclerosis.