Effects of Probucol on restenosis after rabbit carotid artery balloon injury

Objective To investigate the effect of Probucol on restenosis after carotid artery balloon injury.Methods 30 New Zealand White rabbits were randomly assigned to Probucol group(n=15)and control(n=15).Carotid artery tissues were harvested at weeks 8 after injury by balloon.During 8 weeks the rabbits were fed with hypercholesterolaemic diet.The areas of lumen of blood vessel and intima were observed by HE staining.The levels of serum pro-MMP-2 and MMP-2 were detected by zymograph and total cholesterol(TC),triglyceride(TG),high density lipoprotein cholesterol(HDL-C),low density lipoprotein cholesterol(LDL-C) were measured by enzyme method. Results Serum levels of TC,TG,HDL-C,LDL-C,pro-MMP-2 and MMP-2 in probucol group were lower than those in control,respectively;the expression levels of TC,TG,HDL-C and LDL-C in serum had no significant difference between two groups(P0.05);there were obvious differences of pro-MMP-2,MMP-2 between two groups(P0.05);there was a significant decrease in intimal area,intimal thickness and a significant increase in luminal area compared control with Probucol group(P0.05).Conclusion Probucol can prevent restenosis after rabbits carotid artery balloon injury by inhibiting MMPs.