Cholesterol induced autophagy via IRE1/JNK pathway promotes autophagic cell death in heart tissue

Background Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs), with highest mortality and morbidity rates, are the major cause of death in the world. Due to the limited information on heart tissue changes, mediated by hypercholesterolemia, we planned to investigate molecular mechanisms of endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress and related cell death in high cholesterol fed rabbit model and possible beneficial effects of α-tocopherol. Methods Molecular changes in rabbit...