Caffeic Acid Phenethyl Ester Inhibits the Progression of Elastase Induced Aortic Aneurysm in Rats

Background and Objective: Caffeic acid phenethyl ester (CAPE) is the active constituent of propolis.The study evaluated the effect of CAPE on aortic aneurysm (AA) in rats induced with perfusion of Elastase.Materials and Methods: For the study 36 male Sprague Dawley (n = 12 each group) rats were divided into Sham operated, control and CAPE treated groups.The control and CAPE treated group were subjected to intra-aortic perfusion of elastase to induce AA whereas the sham group received perfusion of saline.The rats of CAPE group received dose of 10 µmol/day control and sham group received saline treatment throughout study.The aortic diameters were recorded before the elastase infusion, post-infusion and final.Blood pressure was also recorded twice before administration and on final day before sacrificing the rats.The aortas were harvested on 24th day and were evaluated for western blot analysis, immunohistochemistry followed by staining with Millers Elastin-Van Gieson.Results: The control rats showed significant increase of aortic size (p<0.05)versus the sham operated group after 24 days, whereas the CAPE treated group showed decrease in aortic size compared to control (p<0.05) with no alterations in blood pressure.CAPE treated rats exhibited decreased expression of metalloproteinase (MMP-2 and MMP-9) and monocyte chemotactic protein-1 (MCP-1).The treatment demonstrated significant decrease in levels of iNOS.Treatment also prevented loss of vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) in aortic walls.Conclusion: The CAPE inhibited the progression of aortic aneurysm in rats by curbing inflammation, reducing oxidative stress and conserving VSMCs.The findings suggest a new therapeutic approach in managing AAs.