The Severity of Internal Carotid Artery Stenosis is Associated with the Cyclin-Dependent Kinase Inhibitor 2A Gene Expression

Abstract

Aim: The INK4b-ARF-INK4a locus in the chromosome 9p21 region is known to play an important role in the development of atherosclerosis. The INK4/ARF transcript p16(INK4a) inhibits the activity of the cyclin-dependent kinases CDK4/CDK6 and arrests cell-cycle progression. CDK inhibitors also regulate G1/S phase progression in vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) and may modulate the early stages of atherosclerosis. Therefore, we aimed to study the expression of the INK4/ARF locus genes CDKN2A and CDKN2BAS in order to examine the p16INK4a protein expression and the level of cell proliferation in carotid plaques and saphenous tissue samples.