Action of elgodipine on atherosclerosis development, cell growth, and oncogene expression in vascular smooth muscle cells.

1. Elgodipine (ELG) had no significant effect on aortic content of cholesterol, plasma cholesterol, or triglycerides concentrations in cholesterol-fed rabbits. However, ELG administration produced a dose-dependent and significant reduction of calcium content of the aorta. 2. In vitro studies showed that ELG was able to inhibit vascular smooth muscle proliferation through a mechanism independent of the expression of the transcription factors c-fos and c-jun.