The GSE40156 dataset (12 (link)) was downloaded from the Gene Expression Omnibus (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/geo/) to determine and investigate the candidate DEGs that potentially contribute to the progression of ATLOs. Samples of the ApoE−/− and wild-type (WT) aorta, ATLO, plaque, adventitia, blood, spleen and renal lymph node were included in the present study. Additionally, the raw data and annotation files were collected with reference to the GPL1261 (Affymetrix Mouse Genome 430 2.0 Array; Affymetrix; Thermo Fisher Scientific, Inc., Waltham, MA, USA) and GPL8321 platforms for downstream analysis (Affymetrix Mouse Genome 430A 2.0 Array; Affymetrix; Thermo Fisher Scientific, Inc.).