In addition to the increase in Col2a1, Col10a1, and Col12a1, which are osteoblastic and chondrocytic marker proteins and therefore likely related to plaque calcification (67, 68), we observed an atherogenesis specific up-regulation of Col8a1, a protein that has recently been implicated in fibrous cap formation in atherosclerosis (69). This evidence concerns the gene COL8A1 and atherosclerosis.