WASHINGTON: Scientists are one step closer to developing the world's first vaccine for heart disease that will reduce immune-based inflammation in arteries, leading to decreased plaque buildup.

The fundamental discovery has shown positive signs for the development of an autoantigen-specific vaccine for reducing the amount of atherosclerotic plaques in mice.

Atherosclerosis is a chronic inflammatory disease of the arterial walls which thicken due to accumulation of cholesterol and triglycerides.

"The T-cell peptide-based vaccine could aid in preventing heart disease and stop or reduce disease progression. The vaccine could also target strokes which are a product of plaque buildup in arteries," said Harley Tse, a professor of immunology and microbiology in Wayne State University's school of medicine.

The discovery was made in the laboratory of Klaus Ley, a prominent vascular biologist of La Jolla Institute for Allergy and Immunology (LIAI).

Shaw and Tse demonstrated that two T cell epitopes of the autoantigen "apoB100" are deeply involved in the development of the disease.