Figure 2.

Pharmacological actions of natural monoterpenes on atherosclerosis. Atheroprotective monoterpenes can target vascular cells involved in atherosclerosis, including endothelial cells, monocytes/macrophages, VSMCs, and dendritic cells. Moreover, they modulate various atherogenesis-related pathological processes, such as hyperlipidemia, inflammation, oxidative stress, apoptosis, NO bioavailability, foam cell formation, autophagy, and abnormal cell proliferation and migration. This figure schematizes atherosclerotic plaque formation in the middle panel, with various target cell types (or pro-atherogenic factor) and relevant pharmacological actions of antiatherogenic monoterpenes shown around the outer margins.