Beneficial or not beneficial: that is the question for IL-1 inhibition in atherosclerosis

Atherosclerosis is a disease of the major arterial blood vessels. It is one of the major causes of heart attack and stroke.

The proinflammatory molecule IL-1 has been linked to atherosclerosis and a clinical trial has been launched in which an antibody specific for IL-1-beta is being studied for its effects on the severe clinical complications of atherosclerosis (i.e., heart attack and stroke).

However, a team of researchers led by Gary Owens, at the University of Virginia, Charlottesville, has now generated data in mice that raise potential concerns about this clinical trial — Owens and colleagues find that IL-1 limits the features of advanced atherosclerosis that are linked to the severe complications of the disease in humans.