EGCG treatment was started late, when atherosclerotic lesions in the aortic sinus were already at an advanced stage, said Dr. Chyu, who serves as an assistant professor of medicine at the David Geffen School of Medicine at the University of California, Los Angeles. Our observations that EGCG reduced the progression of evolving carotid plaques but had no effect on the mature plaques in the aorta reinforce the theory that intervention is effective in early but not late stages of atherosclerotic development. It appears that antioxidant therapy would have therapeutic benefits only if initiated during a critical window very early in the formation of plaque.
In addition to evaluating potential therapeutic value, the research team studied the effects of EGCG on genetic and molecular mechanisms and signaling pathways that are involved in the regulation of vessel cell growth, the tissue repair process, and the evolution of plaque, according to Prediman K. Shah, MD, cardiologist, senior author of the study and director of Cedars-Sinai ™s Division of Cardiology and the Atherosclerosis Research Center.
By identifying and better understanding the underlying processes, we look forward to developing and fine-tuning innovative prevention and treatment techniques in the future, said Dr. Shah, who holds the Shapell and Webb Family Endowed Chair in Cardiology at Cedars-Sinai and is a professor of medicine at UCLA.
Cedars-Sinai is one of the largest nonprofit academic medical centers in the Western United States. For the fifth straight two-year period, it has been named Southern California's gold standard in health care in an independent survey. Cedars-Sinai is internationally renowned for its diagnostic and treatment capabilities and its broad spectrum of programs and services, as well as breakthroughs in biomedical research and superlative medical education. It ranks among the top 10 non-university hospitals in the nation for its research activities.
Results of the study are published in the May 25 issue of the American Heart Association journal Circulation.
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