Human serum paraoxonase 1 (PON1) activity is inversely related to the risk of developing an atherosclerotic lesion, which contains cholesterol-loaded macrophage foam cells.
Serum high density lipoprotein (HDL)-associated paraoxonase 1 (PON1) reduces oxidative stress in lipoproteins, in macrophages, and in the atherosclerotic lesion, whereas paraoxonase 2 (PON2, which is present in tissues, but not in serum) acts as an antioxidant at the cellular and not humoral level.
We found that PON1 activity and concentration were significantly lower and CCL2 concentration higher in PAD patients compared to controls, that the combination of plasma CCL2 and PON1- related values, especially PON1 concentration differentiated, almost perfectly, controls from patients and that the expression of CCL2 and PON1 generally co-localized in the atherosclerotic lesion.