CRP and atherosclerosis: Pro-inflammatory cytokines and endothelial cell adhesion molecules that have been associated with PD in both human and animal studies include C-reactive protein (CRP), tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), interleukins (IL), including IL-1β, IL-6, IL-8, and IL-17, matrix metalloproteinases (MMP), vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 (VCAM-1), intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1), E-selectin and P-selectin, most of which have been strongly implicated in the initiation and progression of ASCVD [14], [15], [16].