One particular characteristic of atherosclerosis is the increased expression of various inflammatory mediators such as vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 (VCAM-1) (Mackesy and Goalstone 2011) and matrix metallopeptidase-9 (MMP-9), which is critical for the development of arterial lesions by regulating smooth muscle cell migration and matrix degradation (Cho 2002), in arterial lesions. The gene discussed is VCAM1; the disease is atherosclerosis.