Pharmacological Inhibition of CCR2 Decreases Macrophage Infiltration in the Aortic Root of the HuCCR2ki / ApoE-/- Mouse: MRI Assessment

Gregory H. Turner¹, Alan R. Olzinski¹, Roberta E. Bernard¹, Heather Karr¹, Carla A. Cornejo¹, Karpagam Aravindhan¹, Bao Hoang¹, Robert N. Willette¹, Colin H. MacPhee¹, Clark A. Sehon¹, Peter J. Gough¹, Beat M. Jucker¹

The purpose of this study was to non-invasively assess the ability for a selective CCR2 antagonist to reduce the recruitment of macrophage to atherosclerotic lesions in a murine model of accelerated plaque growth. Therefore after 5 weeks of antagonist treatment in Ang II administered huCCR2ki/apoE-/- mice, USPIO MRI contrast agent was administered in order to non-invasively assess the macrophage burden in the aorta.