For instance, PVAT displays an endothelial protective effect in the LDLr-KO model of atherosclerosis through the compensatory increase in PVAT NOS-3 expression (in sharp contrast to the lack of NOS-3 expression in the endothelium), thus leading to the recovery of acetylcholine relaxation in the early stages of atherosclerosis development (Baltieri et al., 2018). Here, NOS3 is linked to atherosclerosis.