Recently, a research report published in the international magazine JCI Insight entitled "Imaging mass spectrometry reveals heterogeneity of proliferation and metabolism in atherosclerosis", scientists from Vanderbilt University and Brigham and Women's Hospital in the United States through the study of in-depth analysis The molecular mechanism of human atherosclerosis.

Atherosclerosis is a slow and progressive narrowing of the arteries caused by plaque formation. The arterial plaques in the body of atherosclerosis mainly pass through the blood vessels and vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs). The local proliferation of cells) is accompanied by a related change in cell metabolism. To date, researchers have not been able to directly study the proliferation and metabolic changes of cells in atherosclerotic plaques.

In this study, the researchers, Dr. Jonathan D. Brown and others, used the quantitative imaging technology called multi-isotope imaging mass spectrometry (MIMS) to conduct research for the first time. In the article, researchers used This technique directly measures changes in cell division in atherosclerotic plaques and changes in cellular glucose utilization at subcellular resolution.

The researchers say that the significant heterogeneity of glucose metabolism in vascular smooth muscle cells changes with the proliferative state and the proximity of plaques in growth. MIMS technology may serve as a powerful complementary means to help study atherosclerosis in vivo. The cell biological processes and molecular mechanisms of the sclerosis, and related research results are also expected to help researchers develop new therapies for the treatment of atherosclerosis.