Receptors for oxidized low density lipoprotein

An increasing body of evidence indicates that oxidized low density lipoprot ein (LDL) is involved in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis. One of the fi rst biologic actions of oxidized LDL to be identified in vitro was its abil ity to interact with the 'acetyl LDL receptor' discovered by Goldstein and Brown. Over the past decade, considerable progress has been made in identif ying and characterizing cell-surface receptors for oxidized LDL. Most of th ese receptors are thought to be multifunctional because they interact with several structurally different ligands, and accordingly have been termed 's cavenger receptors'. The objective of this article is to review the most im portant publications dealing with structure, ligand specificity, regulation , and function of scavenger receptors. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science B.V. All r ights reserved.