The most notable change among these four MMPs was in MMP-12, an elastase, whose expression was upregulated by up to 6000-fold in WHHL and 18,000-fold in cholesterol-fed rabbits compared with in chow-fed control rabbits, suggesting that MMP-12 plays an important role in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis. This evidence concerns the gene MMP12 and atherosclerosis.