IL6 and atherosclerosis: Considering the role of PI3K/Akt/NF-κB signaling pathway and its downstream inflammatory cytokines in atherosclerosis, this study was designed to investigate the inflammatory mechanism of CCC on atherosclerosis in the ApoE-knockout (ApoE−/−) mice fed with a high-fat diet by detecting the expressions of TNF-α, IL-6, PI3K, Akt, and NF-κB.