APOE and atherosclerosis: Atherosclerosis is a chronic inflammatory disease driven by endothelial dysfunction, lipid accumulation, and immune cell recruitment, ultimately leading to plaque formation within the intimal layer of the arterial wall.328 Multiple studies have shown that MSCs exhibit protective effects in atherosclerosis models induced by a high-fat diet in apolipoprotein E (ApoE)- or low-density lipoprotein receptor (LDLR)-knockout mice.