Effects of NTE-122, a novel acyl-CoA : cholesterol acyltransferase inhibitor, on cholesterol esterification and high-density lipoprotein-induced cholesterol efflux in macrophages
Y. Azuma et al., Effects of NTE-122, a novel acyl-CoA : cholesterol acyltransferase inhibitor, on cholesterol esterification and high-density lipoprotein-induced cholesterol efflux in macrophages, JPN J PHARM, 79(2), 1999, pp. 159-167
We investigated the effects of a novel acyl-CoA:cholesterol acyltransferase
(ACAT) inhibitor, NTE-122 (trans-1,4-bis[[l -cyclohexyl-3 -(4-dimethylamin
o phenyl)ureido]methyl] cyclohexane), on ACAT activities in macrophages ori
ginating from several species and high-density lipoprotein (HDL)-induced ch
olesterol efflux in phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA)-treated THP-1 cel
ls. NTE-122 inhibited cell-free ACAT activities in human PMA-treated THP-1
cells and mouse J774.1 cells with IC50 values of 0.88 and 360 nM, respectiv
ely. NTE-122 competively inhibited the ACAT activity in PMA-treated THP-1 c
ells. NTE-122 also inhibited cellular ACAT activities in PMA-treated THP-1
cells, rat peritoneal macrophages and J774.1 cells with IC50 values of 3.5,
84 and 6800 nM, respectively. Furthermore, NTE-122 prevented cholesterol a
ccumulation in PMA-treated THP-1 cells incubated with acetylated low densit
y lipoprotein, simultaneously with HDL, while it caused accumulation of a s
ignificant amount of free cholesterol in the absence and even in the presen
ce of HDL. NTE-122 also enhanced HDL-induced cholesterol efflux from establ
ished foam cells converted from PMA-treated THP-1 cells. These results sugg
est that NTE-122, capable of inhibiting macrophage ACAT activity in humans
more strongly than those in the other species, exhibits anti-atherogenic ef
fects by preventing the foam cell formation and enhancing the foam cell reg
ression in humans.