Artichoke extracts have been shown to produce various pharmacological effects, such as the inhibition of cholesterol biosynthesis and of LDL oxidation. Endothelial dysfunction represents the first ...stage of atherosclerotic disease; it is usually evaluated in humans by a noninvasive ultrasound method as brachial flow-mediated vasodilation (FMV) and by the determination of several humoral markers such as vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 (VCAM-1), intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1), and E-selectin. Aim of the study was to investigate the effects of dietary supplementation with artichoke juice on brachial FMV of hyperlipemics. We studied 18 moderately hyperlipemic patients (LDL cholesterol > 130 <200 mg/dl and/or triglycerides >150 <250 mg/dl) of both genders and 10 hyperlipemic patients, matched for age, sex and lipid parameters. All subjects were under isocaloric hypolipidic diet. A basal determination of serum lipids, soluble VCAM-1, ICAM-1, E-selectin and brachial FMV was performed. Thereafter patients were given 20 ml/die of frozen artichoke juice. The same parameters were repeated after 6 weeks. After artichoke treatment there was an increase of triglycerides (156 ± 54 vs 165 ± 76 mg/dL, p < 0.05) and a reduction of total cholesterol (261 ± 37 vs 244 ± 38 mg/dL, p < 0.05) and LDL cholesterol (174 ± 31 vs 160 ± 34 mg/dL, p < 0.05). Controls showed a significant decrease in total and LDL cholesterol (respectively: 267 ± 22 vs 249 ± 20 mg/dL and 180 ± 24 vs 164 ± 23 mg/dL, both p < 0.001). After artichoke there was a decrease in VCAM-1(1633 ± 1293 vs 1139 ± 883 ng/mL, p < 0.05) and ICAM-1(477 ± 123 vs 397 ± 102 ng/mL, p < 0.05), brachial FMV increased (3.3 ± 2.7 vs 4.5 ± 2.4%, p < 0.01), while controls did not exhibit significant changes in VCAM-1, ICAM-1, E-selectin and brachial FMV. Univariate analysis showed that, in artichoke patients, changes of VCAM-1 and ICAM-1 were significantly related to changes in brachial FMV (respectively: r = −0.66 and r = −0.62; both p < 0.05). In conclusion, artichoke dietary supplementation seems to positively modulate endothelial function in hypercholesterolemia.
Background Endothelial dysfunction is considered one of the earliest events in the process of atherosclerosis, and an impaired vasodilatory response has been reported in patients with dyslipidemias. ...However, the independent association between hypertriglyceridemia and endothelial dysfunction is controversial, and the relation between endothelium-dependent vasodilation and circulating cell adhesion molecules as markers of endothelial dysfunction has not been fully determined. Methods Brachial artery flow mediated vasodilation (FMV) and the soluble forms of vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 (sVCAM-1) and intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (sICAM-1) were determined after overnight fasting in 16 men with hypertriglyceridemia (age 33 ± 6 years) and in 16 age-matched healthy men with normal triglycerides and cholesterol. Subjects who smoked and those with known cardiovascular disease, diabetes, hypertension, recent or active infections, or any other disease that could affect leukocyte activation were excluded from the study. Results Compared with normal subjects, subjects with hypertriglyceridemia showed a higher level of sVCAM-1 and sICAM-1 (both P <.001), a reduced FMV (P <.01), and a smaller LDL particle size (P <.05). FMV had a significant inverse correlation with sVCAM-1 (r = –0.61, P <.001) and sICAM-1 (r = –0.38, P <.03). LDL particle size had a strong, direct association with FMV (r = 0.75, P <.001) and an inverse association with adhesion molecules. By multiple regression analysis, triglycerides (P <.001) and small LDL particle size (P <.002) predicted a reduced FMV. Conclusions Serum level of cell adhesion molecules is increased and FMV is impaired in young healthy men with hypertriglyceridemia compared with age-matched men with normal lipid levels. Small, dense LDL particles may play a role in determining endothelial dysfunction in these subjects. (Am Heart J 2000;140:521-6.)
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