Role of zinc in maintaining endothelial integrity

The vascular endothelium plays an active role in the physiologic processes of vessel tone regulation, inflammatory responses, and vascular permeability. Endothelial cell dysfunction may disturb the normal communication of these cells with plasma components, blood-borne cells, and abluminal tissues. There is evidence that zinc is vital to endothelial integrity and that zinc can protect endothelial cells against lipid- or inflammatory cytokine-mediated insults. These observed protective properties may be due in part to the ability of zinc to act as an antioxidant and a membrane stabilizer. Most of all, zinc may have specific antiatherogenic properties by inhibiting oxidative stress-responsive transcription factors that are activated during an inflammatory response in atherosclerosis.