System Maintenance Notice

Please note that maintenance work is scheduled between 4 AM and 5 AM - CET. During this time, you may experience reduced performance. Thanks for your patience.

Publications

Journal Article Review Epublish

PubMed: 40726539 DOI: 10.1016/j.jmccpl.2025.100476

Current status and challenges of multi-omics research using animal models of atherosclerosis.

J Mol Cell Cardiol Plus 13:100476

Authors: Tijana Mitić, Adriana Georgescu, Nicoleta Alexandru-Moise, Michael J Davies, Cecile Vindis, Susana Novella, Eva Gerdts, Georgios Kararigas, Stephanie Bezzina Wettinger, Melissa M Formosa, Brenda R Kwak, Filippo Molica, Nuria Amigo, Andrea Caporali, Fernando de la Cuesta, Ignacio Fernando Hall, Angeliki Chroni, Fabio Martelli, Johannes A Schmid, Paolo Magni, Dimitris Kardassis

Affiliations

  • Centre for Cardiovascular Science (CVS), Queen's Medical Research Institute (QMRI), University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh BioQuarter, United Kingdom.
  • Department of Pathophysiology and Cellular Pharmacology, Institute of Cellular Biology and Pathology 'Nicolae Simionescu', Bucharest, Romania.
  • Department of Biomedical Sciences, Panum Institute, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark.
  • CARDIOMET, Center for Clinical Investigation 1436 (CIC1436)/INSERM, Toulouse, France.
  • Department of Physiology, University of Valencia - INCLIVA Biomedical Research Institute, Valencia, Spain.
  • Department of Clinical Science, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway.
  • Department of Physiology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Iceland, Reykjavik, Iceland.
  • Department of Applied Biomedical Science, Faculty of Health Sciences and Centre for Molecular Medicine and Biobanking, University of Malta, Malta.
  • Department of Pathology and Immunology and Geneva Centre for Inflammation Research, Faculty of Medicine, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland.
  • Department of Basic Medical Sciences, Universitat Rovira i Virgili, Reus, Spain.
  • Center for Biomedical Research in Diabetes and Associated Metabolic Diseases (CIBERDEM), Instituto de Salud Carlos III (ISCIII), Madrid, Spain.
  • Biosfer Teslab, Reus, Spain.
  • Department of Pharmacology and Therapeutics, School of Medicine, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Spain.
  • Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria del Hospital, Universitario La Paz (IdiPAZ), Madrid, Spain.
  • Institute of Biosciences and Applications, National Center for Scientific Research "Demokritos", Athens, Greece.
  • Molecular Cardiology Laboratory, IRCCS Policlinico San Donato, Milan, Italy.
  • Institute of Vascular Biology and Thrombosis Research, Center for Physiology and Pharmacology, Medical University of Vienna, Austria.
  • Department of Pharmacological and Biomolecular Sciences 'Rodolfo Paoletti', Università degli Studi di Milano, Milan, Italy.
  • IRCCS MultiMedica, Milan, Italy.
  • Department of Basic Sciences, University of Crete Medical School, Heraklion, Greece.
  • Institute of Molecular Biology and Biotechnology, Foundation for Research and Technology of Hellas, Heraklion, Greece.

Abstract

Atherosclerosis is an underlying cause of cardiovascular diseases (CVD) which account for most deaths worldwide. Use of diverse preclinical models of atherosclerosis has been implemental in understanding the underlying mechanisms, the implicated cell types, the genes and the molecules at play in the onset and progression of atherosclerotic plaques. Although significant research advancements have been made, further research is necessary to delve into factors influencing plaque types, site preference within the vasculature, interactions with adjacent tissues (liver, pancreas and perivascular adipose tissue), inflammation and sex-based disparities, among others. The conventional low throughput methodologies which concentrate on individual cells, genes or metabolites are inadequate to tackle the complex and heterogeneous nature of atherosclerosis. With recent advancement in multi-omics and bioinformatics, research approaches have illuminated a clearer understanding of atherosclerosis. Consequently, these advancements pave the path to design novel therapeutics to complement currently approved lipid-lowering and other effective treatments. In this article, we summarize and critically evaluate the findings derived from recent high throughput single- or multi-omic studies conducted in animal models of atherosclerosis. We also delve into the challenges associated with using experimental animals to model human atherosclerosis and contemplate the essential enhancements needed to better mimic human conditions. We further discuss the requirement of establishing a structured multi-omic database for atherosclerosis research, enabling broader access and utilisation within the scientific community.

MeSH

Cells, Genes, Multiple Chronic Conditions, Research, Atherosclerosis, Therapeutics, Tissues