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Research Article: GLP-1 receptor agonists alleviate inflammatory responses and endothelial dysfunction in atherosclerosis by activating the Sema3A/NRP1 pathway

Date Published: 2026-05-12

Abstract:
This study aimed to investigate the mechanism by which GLP-1 RAs activate the Sema3A/NRP1 signaling pathway to alleviate inflammation and endothelial dysfunction in atherosclerosis (AS). Ten 8-week-old male C57BL/6J mice served as controls (CON) and received intraperitoneal injections of saline every 2 days. Forty ApoE ?/? mice were fed a 60?kcal% fat high-fat diet for 12 weeks. From weeks 13 to 24, the ApoE ?/? mice were randomly divided into 4 groups ( n =?10): AS model group (AS, saline injections), low/high-dose GLP-1 RAs group (L/H-GLP-1 RAs, 30/60??g/kg semaglutide injections) and atorvastatin group (ATO, 1.3?mg/kg atorvastatin injections as a positive control). For rescue experiments, endothelial-specific NRP1 knockout ( NRP1 EC-KO ) mice were generated. Thirty NRP1 WT mice were divided into 3 groups ( n =?10): NRP1 WT control group ( NRP1 WT CON), the NRP1 WT AS model group ( NRP1 WT AS) and the NRP1 WT AS model?+?high dose GLP-1 RAs group ( NRP1 WT +?H-GLP-1 RAs). While twenty NRP1 EC-KO mice were divided into NRP1 EC-KO AS and NRP1 EC-KO +?H-GLP-1 RAs groups ( n =?10). Mouse body weight was monitored weekly during interventions, and mice were euthanized with 120?mg/kg pentobarbital sodium at the end of experiments. HUVECs were divided into five groups ( n =?3): CON, ox-LDL, L-GLP-1 RAs, H-GLP-1 RAs, ATO. Except for controls, cells were treated with 100??g/mL ox-LDL for 24?h to establish the model. CCK-8 assays determined low/high semaglutide doses (1/2??M), while atorvastatin was applied at 10??M. Rescue experiments included CON, ox-LDL, H-GLP-1 RAs, and NRP1 inhibition?+?H-GLP-1 RAs groups, with the latter pre-treated with 0.5??M NRP1 inhibitor EG01377 for 2?h before interventions. Compared to controls, AS group mice exhibited significant weight gain from week 15 ( P <?0.001), while H-GLP-1 RAs and ATO groups showed reduced weight from week 21 ( P <?0.05). The AS group had elevated serum TC, LDL-C, IL-6, HDL-C, TNF-?, ET-1, TG levels, and percentage of plaque collagen-positive area ( P <?0.001), alongside decreased NO levels ( P <?0.001), all of which were improved by GLP-1 RAs ( P <?0.05). H&E staining revealed reduced inflammatory cell infiltration in aortic roots of semaglutide- and atorvastatin-treated mice. Aortic tissues from AS group mice showed decreased Sema3A/NRP1 expression and binding ( P <?0.05), increased p-ERK1/2/ERK1/2 and p-NF-?B p65/NF-?B p65 ratios ( P <?0.05), which were reversed by semaglutide, with higher doses showing greater effects. Immunofluorescence confirmed that Sema3A and NRP1 mainly localized in vascular endothelial cells. In ox-LDL-induced HUVECs, GLP-1 RAs improved cell viability, migration capacity, and tubule numbers ( P <?0.05), reduced IL-6 and TNF-? levels ( P <?0.05), upregulated eNOS ( P <?0.05), and downregulated VCAM-1 and ICAM-1 ( P <?0.05). Western blot and co-immunoprecipitation results aligned with in vivo trends. In vitro , EG01377 reversed GLP-1 RAs' protective effects ( P <?0.05). In vivo , GLP-1 RAs' therapeutic efficacy was significantly weakened in NRP1 EC-KO mice ( P <?0.05). GLP-1 RAs alleviate inflammation and endothelial dysfunction to reduce the atherosclerosis progression by activating the Sema3A/NRP1 pathway and inhibiting downstream ERK1/2-NF-?B signaling.

Introduction:
Atherosclerosis (AS) represents the primary pathological basis of cardiovascular diseases. It can induce life-threatening complications such as myocardial infarction, cerebral infarction and renal atrophy, and has become a global public health burden ( 1 ). Excessive activation of inflammatory response and vascular endothelial dysfunction are the core pathological processes in the development of AS ( 2 ). Endothelial dysfunction compromises the integrity of vascular barrier, promoting lipid deposition and…

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