Angiotensin II (AngII) has well-characterized effects on blood pressure and fluid balance that
adversely affect atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease. More recently, there is a realization
that AngII exerts direct effects on arterial wall cells to influence atherosclerotic lesion
formation. Several groups have shown that infusion of AngII into hyperlipidemic mice rapidly
and profoundly augments lesion formation. The increase in lesions from AngII was not
attributable to elevated blood pressure. The lesions formed from AngII infusion are overtly …