Favorable effect of rivaroxaban against vascular dysfunction in diabetic mice by inhibiting NLRP3 inflammasome activation

Abstract Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death in various complications of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Rivaroxaban (Xarelto; Bayer), an oral direct factor Xa (FXa) inhibitor, prevents the activation of the coagulation cascade in CVD. Considering its anticoagulant and anti‐inflammatory effects, we assessed the hypothesis that rivaroxaban treatment may attenuate the vascular lesion and dysfunction in T2DM mice. C57BL/6, BKS‐db/db, BKS‐db/+, wild‐type (WT), and NLRP3 −/− mice were fed with standard chow or high‐fat diet (HFD). Biochemical indexes, vascular lesions, and protein expression were evaluated using Western blot analysis, immunofluorescent staining, and RNA interference. Rivaroxaban presented favorable protection of vascular dysfunction in T2DM mice with significantly relieved vascular tension, intima‐media thickness, and collagen deposition. Similar improvements in NLR family pyrin domain containing 3 (NLRP3) knockout groups and rivaroxaban pointed to the positive role of rivaroxaban against vascular dysfunction in diabetic mice by ameliorating NLRP3 inflammasome activation. Furthermore, the augmentation of inflammation and cell dysfunction in mice aortic endothelial cells (MAECs) and smooth muscle cells (MOVASs) induced by soluble FXa may be blocked by rivaroxaban via protease‐activated receptors (PAR‐1, PAR‐2), mitogen‐activated protein kinase (MAPK), and nuclear factor κ‐B (NF‐κB) pathway. The data indicate that the development of vascular dysfunction and inflammation in T2DM mice may be blocked by rivaroxaban in vivo and in vitro. Rivaroxaban treatment may also attenuate NLRP3 inflammasome activation via PARs, MAPK, and NF‐κB pathway. This study provides mechanistic evidence of rivaroxaban therapies for vascular complications of T2DM.