Fig. 4.

Rimonabant inhibits oxysterol-induced macrophage apoptosis and AcLDL-induced foam cell formation. Raw 264.7 macrophages were treated with varying amounts of Rimonabant 1h prior to the addition of 7KC (20 µg/ml) as indicated in the figure. After 16h, the induction of apoptosis was evaluated by (A) caspase-3 activity assays and (B) immunoblotting for cleavage of caspase 3 and PARP. (C) Effect of Rimonabant on induction of apoptosis by staurosporine (1 µM) in Raw 264.7 macrophages as determined by caspase-3 activity. (D) Rimonabant does not affect cell viability as determined by modified MTT assay. (E) Representative photomicrographs of Raw 264.7 macrophages cultured in the absence or presence of Rimonabant (8 µM) for 1hr prior to addition of AcLDL (100 µg/ml) for 16h prior to staining with oil red-O to visualize cytosolic accumulation of neutral lipid droplets. Original magnification = 40×. Bar, 10 µm. * = P <0.05.