Cigarette Smoking and Adipose Tissue: The Emerging Role in Progression of Atherosclerosis

Figure 1

Smoking-associated inflammatory response in artery walls. Smoking causes endothelial dysfunction with VSMCs phenotypic modulation. In addition, more macrophages are recruited and activated to secrete cytokines and chemokines. The resultant inflammatory response leads to atherosclerotic plaque formation and subsequent plaque rupture. TNF-α: tumor necrosis factor-α; IL-1, interleukin-1.