Vascular protection genistein

Vascular protection could also be conferred by the ability of genistein to inhibit proliferation of vascular endothelial cells and smooth muscle cells and to increase levels of TGE-j8. TGE-j8 helps maintain normal vessel wall structure and promotes smooth muscle cell differentiation while preventing their migration and proliferation. Genistein has been shown to increase TGE-j8 secretion by ceUs in culture, and increased TGE-j8 production may be a mediator of some of the cardioprotective effects of soya isoflavones. 

ER/3 is the predominant ER isoform expressed in the rat, mouse, and human vascular wall. In the rat carotid injury model, following endothelial denudation of rat carotid artery, ERa is expressed at a low level, whereas the expression of ERjS increases by greater that 40-fold and treatment of ovariectomized female rats with genistein provides a similar dose-dependent vasculoprotective effect in this model to that observed with 17 8-oestradiol. However, studies in ERjS knockout mice have shown that ERjS is not required for oestrogen-mediated inhibition of the response to vascular injury and suggest that either of the two known oestrogen receptors (or another unidentified one) is sufficient to protect against vascular injmy. 

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