Inflammation plays a pivotal role in atherogenesis. In addition to being a potent predictive and prognostic marker for major cardiovascular events,recent evidence indicates that C-reactive protein (CRP) might directly promote atherogenesis by exerting direct effects on vascular cells. Thus,CRP will become important novel pharmaceutical targets for the treatment of atherosclerosis. This review presents an overview of the current knowledge about the pathological role of CRP in atherosclerosis initiation and progression.
