Aim To investigate the effect of low density lipoprotein(LDL) subfractions on the expression of cell adhesion molecules, such as intercellular adhesion molecule 1(ICAM 1) and vascular cell adhesion molecule 1 (VCAM 1) in cultured human umbilical vein endothelial cells (hUVEC). Methods LDL subfractions, small dense LDL(sLDL) and large buoyant LDL (bLDL), were obtained by two sequential ultracentrifugation, Native sLDL(n sLDL), oxidized sLDL(ox sLDL), native bLDL (n bLDL) and oxidized bLDL (ox bLDL) were incubated with hUVEC at 37℃ for 12 hours. Cell ELISA was used to detect the expression of ICAM 1 and VCAM 1 proteins. Results The expression of ICAM 1 and VCAM 1 proteins were enhanced in the four groups. N sLDL and ox sLDL enhanced the levels of ICAM 1 and VCAM 1 in a dose dependent manner. Compared with the same dosage, ox sLDL was the most potent stimulus for ICAM 1 and VCAM 1 expression at 25 mg and 50 mg, while n sLDL was the most potent stimulus at 100 mg (Expression of ICAM 1 is 0.830±0.09 and of VCAM 1 is 0.37±0.04). Conclusion The sLDL can induce ICAM 1 and VCAM 1 expression in hUVEC, thus influencing the pathogenesis of athersclerosis.