Mapping, modeling, and characterization of protein-protein interactions on a proteomic scale

Proteins effect a number of biological functions, from cellular signaling, organization, mobility, and transport to catalyzing biochemical reactions and coordinating an immune response. These varied functions are often dependent upon macromolecular interactions, particularly with other proteins. Small-scale studies in the scientific literature report protein-protein interactions (PPIs), but slowly and with bias towards well-studied proteins. In an era where genomic sequence is readily available, deducing genotype-phenotype relationships requires an understanding of protein connectivity at proteome-scale. A proteome-scale map of the protein-protein interaction network provides a global view of cellular organization and function. Here, we discuss a summary of methods for building proteome-scale interactome maps and the current status and implications of mapping achievements. Not only do interactome maps serve as a reference, detailing global cellular function and organization patterns, but they can also reveal the mechanisms altered by disease alleles, highlight the patterns of interaction rewiring across evolution, and help pinpoint biologically and therapeutically relevant proteins. Despite the considerable strides made in proteome-wide mapping, several technical challenges persist. Therefore, future considerations that impact current mapping efforts are also discussed.

Abstract OT1-01-04: VENTANA (SOLTI-1501): Oral metronomic vinorelbine combined with endocrine therapy in luminal/HER2-negative early breast cancer: A window of opportunity trial

BACKGROUND

The CDK4/6 inhibitor palbociclib, in combination with endocrine therapy (ET), has been approved for patients (pts) with HR+/HER2- metastatic breast cancer (BC), suggesting that inhibition of the cell cycle in combination with ET is a strategy to keep exploring. In this context, vinorelbine (VNB) inhibits chromosome segregation during mitosis and blocks cells at G2/M. Interestingly, several metronomic schedules of VNB are being used in the clinical setting, a strategy that might not only affect cell-cycle but also aims to target tumor angiogenesis.

VENTANA is a “window-of-opportunity” trial designed to explore whether, similarly to CDK4/6 and mTOR inhibitors, oral metronomic VNB in combination with endocrine therapy induces a superior anti-proliferative effect than ET alone, as suggested by preclinical and clinical studies. We believe that a biological synergy of the combined treatment could open the door to include this treatment strategy in pts with BC as an alternative to CDK4/6 inhibitors.

METHODS

VENTANA is a phase 0 multicenter, three-arm, randomized clinical trial of oral metronomic VNB and letrozole (LET) versus either treatment alone in postmenopausal women with newly diagnosed, untreated HR+ and HER2-, stage I-III operable BC. Other eligibility criteria include primary tumor size ≥1 cm (cT1-3) and N0-1, ECOG PS 0-1 and evaluable diagnostic tumor sample. Pts are randomized (1:1:1) to receive LET 2.5mg daily, oral VNB 50mg 3 days a week, or LET 2.5mg daily and oral VNB 50mg 3 times a week. After 3 weeks of treatment, pts will undergo surgery, and both pre-treatment and post-treatment surgical samples will be analyzed for gene expression. Primary objective is to test if oral metronomic VNB and LET induce a superior anti-proliferative effect than either drug alone in pts with early BC defined as Luminal by PAM50. This will be evaluated by the expression of 11 proliferative genes contained in the PAM50 subtype predictor (BIRC5, CCNB1, CDC20, CDCA1, CEP55, KNTC2, MKI67, PTTG1, RRM2, TYMS and UBE2C) as surrogate signature biomarker of its anticancer activity.

VENTANA is a proof-of-concept study to describe the change in the expression of a proliferation-related gene signature in all 3 treatment arms. Changes in the proliferation signature will be determined by following formula: Mean suppression of proliferation signature score = 100 − [geometric mean (post treatment proliferation score / pre-treatment proliferation score · 100)]. By evaluating other BC-related gene signatures (560 genes), the antiangiogenic and immunogenic potential of the treatment arms will also be compared and genes regulated in a treatment-specific manner identified. All analyses will be performed within the different PAM50-defined subtypes (Luminal, Luminal A or Luminal B).

As the primary endpoint is continuous and there are no previous data to make assumptions about the degree of suppression of these genes, the sample size has not been determined by statistical calculations. A sample size of 20 pts per arm is considered appropriate to support our hypothesis. The targeted accrual of 60 pts will be enrolled in 10 sites across Spain (EudraCT Number 2015-004714-24).

Citation Format: Adamo B, Vidal M, Gomez Pardo P, Zaragoza K, Ciruelos E, Virizuela JA, Blanch Tormo S, Pérez-Fidalgo JA, Murillo L, Lopez-Gonzalez A, Amillano Parraga K, Martinez Jañez N, Gonzàlez Farré X, Prat A. VENTANA (SOLTI-1501): Oral metronomic vinorelbine combined with endocrine therapy in luminal/HER2-negative early breast cancer: A window of opportunity trial [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 2016 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium; 2016 Dec 6-10; San Antonio, TX. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2017;77(4 Suppl):Abstract nr OT1-01-04.

Abstract P5-15-05: Randomized phase II study evaluating different schedules of nab-paclitaxel in metastatic breast cancer (MBC): Results of the SNAP study

Background

Longer chemotherapy (CT) duration is associated with a significant improvement in progression-free survival (PFS) and a moderate, but significant improvement in overall survival (OS) in MBC patients (pts). Prolonged CT administration, however, must be weighed against the side effects of continuous CT delivery. The SNAP trial was designed to improve the tolerability of prolonged CT by studying alternative treatment schedules.

Methods

The SNAP trial enrolled 258 women from April 2013 to Aug 2015. Eligibility criteria included HER2- MBC, no prior CT for advanced disease, measurable and/or non-measurable disease.

All eligible pts were randomized to one of three arms. Pts received the same induction chemotherapy consisting of 3 cycles of nab-Paclitaxel given days 1,8,15 Q28, followed by one of the three maintenance therapy schedules. Originally, the dose of the induction chemotherapy was 150 mg/m2, but this was reduced to 125 mg/m2 following the first safety review of 48 treated pts. The three schedules of nab-Paclitaxel used as maintenance therapy were (Arm A) nab-Paclitaxel 150 mg/m2 d 1,15 Q28; (Arm B) nab-Paclitaxel 100 mg/m2 d 1,8,15 Q28; (Arm C) nab-Paclitaxel 75 mg/m2 d 1,8,15,22 Q28.

The primary objective is to evaluate the efficacy of three nab-Paclitaxel regimens as measured by progression-free survival (PFS), using the historical reference of PFS (based on AVADO study) of docetaxel for first-line treatment of metastatic breast cancer. Each of the three regimens is compared to the historic 7-month median PFS to determine whether any of the three regimens are worthy of further investigation. Secondary endpoints include tolerability, feasibility, response rate, OS and QoL.

Results

Two-hundred-fifty-eight pts have been randomised and 255 are available for primary endpoint evaluation. At 18.2 months' median follow-up, 182 PFS events and 85 deaths have been observed. Median PFS was 7.9 months (90%CI 6.8-8.4) in Arm A, 9.0 months (90%CI 8.1-10.9) in Arm B and 8.5 (90%CI 6.7-9.5) in Arm C. PFS in Arm B was significantly longer than the historic PFS of first-line docetaxel (one-sided log-rank p=0.03).

As expected, neurotoxicity was the most frequent adverse event. In the induction phase, grade≥2 sensory neuropathy was reported in 14.8% of pts at the starting dose of 150 mg/m2 and 7.5% at the starting dose of 125 mg/m2; grade≥3 sensory neuropathy occurred in 2.5% and 0% of the pts, respectively. In the maintenance phase, grade≥2 sensory neuropathy was reported in 37.9% of pts in Arm A, 36.1% in Arm B and 31.2% in Arm C; grade≥3 sensory neuropathy occurred in 9.1%, 5.6% and 6.6% of the pts, respectively.

199 pts started the maintenance phase. The median number of maintenance cycles was 3, 4, and 5, respectively. Stopping maintenance for reasons other than objective progression occurred in 41%, 58%, and 53%, respectively.

Conclusion

The SNAP trial indicates that alternative maintenance chemotherapy schedules with reduced doses after a short term induction phase at conventional doses are feasible and significantly more active than the historical PFS of docetaxel in the first line treatment of advanced breast cancer.

Citation Format: Gennari A, Sun Z, Hasler-Strub U, Colleoni M, Kennedy J, von Moos R, Cortes J, Vidal M, Hennessy B, Walshe J, Amillano Parraga K, Morales Murrillo S, Pagani O, Barbeaux A, Borstnar S, Rabaglio M, Maibach R, Regan MM, Jerusalem G. Randomized phase II study evaluating different schedules of nab-paclitaxel in metastatic breast cancer (MBC): Results of the SNAP study [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 2016 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium; 2016 Dec 6-10; San Antonio, TX. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2017;77(4 Suppl):Abstract nr P5-15-05.

Abstract S3-03: PAM50 intrinsic subtype as a predictor of pathological complete response following neoadjuvant dual HER2 blockade without chemotherapy in HER2-positive breast cancer: First results of the PAMELA clinical trial

Background: Prior neoadjuvant studies in HER2+ breast cancer have shown that dual HER2 blockade without chemotherapy achieves pathological complete responses (pCR) rates of 6-36% (TBCRC006/TBCRC023/NeoSphere). However, a major challenge today is how to select prospectively patients who will derive the maximum benefit from dual anti-HER2 therapies without chemotherapy. In this context, we and others have previously shown that HER2+ disease is biologically heterogeneous and composed of all the intrinsic molecular subtypes (Luminal A, Luminal B, HER2-enriched [HER2-E] and Basal-like). Among them, the HER2-E subtype shows the highest activation of the EGFR/HER2 pathway.

Methods: PAMELA (NCT01973660) is a non-randomized, open-label, multicentric, prospective translational research study in stage I-IIIA HER2+ breast cancer designed to evaluate the ability of the PAM50 intrinsic subtypes to predict pCR in the breast (pCRB; in situ allowed) following 18 weeks of neoadjuvant lapatinib and trastuzumab). Patients with HR+ disease received letrozole (if postmenopausal) or tamoxifen (if pre-menopausal). The primary objective was to compare the pCRB rates of the HER2-E versus the non-HER2-E subtypes in the intent-to-treat population. The study was planned with a power of 95% at a significance level of 0.05 to detect an absolute relative difference in pCRB rates between the two groups of 27% (i.e. 35% in HER2E and 8% in non-HER2-E). Day-15 formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tissue samples were prospectively collected and gene expression profiled using the nCounter platform. The intrinsic subtypes were identified using the research-based PAM50 predictor (Parker JCO 2009).

Results: A total of 151 patients were recruited (n=77 HR+ and n=74 HR-). Patient characteristics were: mean age (55 years), mean tumor size (2.84 cm), negative axilla (63.5%) and postmenopausal (60.2%). At baseline, intrinsic subtype distribution was: HER2-E (n=101, 66.9%), Luminal A (n=22; 14.6%), Luminal B (n=16; 10.6%), Basal-like (n=9; 6%) and Normal-Like (n=3; 2%). The overall pCRB was 30.5% (46/151), 18.2% in HR+ disease and 43.2% in HR- disease. Five patients (3.3%) presented progressive disease. Rates of pCRB in HER2-E and non-HER2-E subtypes were 40.6% and 10.0% (p<0.0001), respectively. HER2-E subtype predicted pCRB independently of HR status. Within HR+ disease, pCRB rates were 31.6% in HER2-E subtype and 5.3% in non-HER2-E subtype (p=0.006). Within HR- disease, pCRB rates were 46.0% in HER2-E subtype and 27.3% in non-HER2-E subtypes (p=0.331). At Day-15, the majority of tumors became Normal-like (48.9%) or Luminal A (27.5%). Rates of pCRB were 46.9% in Normal-like tumors and 11.9% in non-Normal-like tumors when evaluated at day-15 (p<0.0001).

Conclusions: The PAMELA trial met its primary endpoint. PAM50 HER2-E subtype identifies patients with HER2+ disease likely to derive a large benefit from dual anti-HER2 therapies +/- endocrine therapy, especially in HER2+/HR+ disease. In addition, early changes in gene expression indicative of a reduction of tumor cellularity are predictive of pathological complete response at surgery.

Citation Format: Prat Aparicio A, Cortes Castan J, Pare L, Galvan P, Bermejo B, Martínez N, Vidal M, Pernas S, López R, Muñoz M, Nuciforo P, Fasani R, Morales S, Oliveira M, de La Peña L, Peláez A, Llombart A. PAM50 intrinsic subtype as a predictor of pathological complete response following neoadjuvant dual HER2 blockade without chemotherapy in HER2-positive breast cancer: First results of the PAMELA clinical trial [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 2016 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium; 2016 Dec 6-10; San Antonio, TX. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2017;77(4 Suppl):Abstract nr S3-03.

Relation between plasma trough concentration of abiraterone and prostate-specific antigen response in metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer patients

BACKGROUND

Abiraterone (ABI) is a major oral agent for the treatment of metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC) patients but its systemic exposure is subject to a large inter-individual variability. We aimed to explore the relationship between ABI trough plasma concentration and prostate-specific antigen (PSA) response in mCRPC patients and to identify the critical determinants for its activity.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

This is a monocentric prospective observational study in mCRPC patients treated with ABI. The plasmatic concentration of ABI at steady state was measured using liquid chromatography with fluorescence detection. The primary objective was to study the relationship between mean ABI plasma exposure (ABI C_min) and 3-month PSA response.

RESULTS

From 2012 to 2016, 61 mCRPC patients were eligible for pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic assessment. Thirty-eight patients experienced PSA response (62%, [confidence interval {CI} 95% 50-78]). In univariate analysis, ABI C_min was 1.5-fold higher in responders: 12.0 ng/mL (CI 95% 9.4-15.6) versus 8.0 ng/mL (CI 95% 5.8-11.6; P = 0.0015). In multivariate analysis, only ABI C_min was independently associated with PSA response (odds ratio = 1.12 [CI 95% 1.01-1.25], P = 0.004). By receiver operating characteristic analysis, the optimal threshold for ABI C_min was 8.4 ng/mL. Progression-free survival (PFS) was significantly higher in patients with ABI C_min above 8.4 ng/mL (hazard ratio 0.55, [CI 95% 0.31-0.99], 12.2 [CI 95% 9.2-19.5] versus 7.4 [CI 95% 5.5-14.7] months otherwise, P = 0.044).

CONCLUSIONS

We showed that ABI trough concentration correlates with PSA response and PFS. Moreover, we could determine a cut-off value of plasmatic concentration for PSA response. Altogether, ABI concentration monitoring appears as a new approach to improve clinical outcome in mCPRC patients.

Neuropsychological alterations and neuroradiological findings in patients with post-traumatic concussion: Results of a pilot study

INTRODUCTION

Mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) has traditionally been considered to cause no significant brain damage since symptoms spontaneously remit after a few days. However, this idea is facing increasing scrutiny. The purpose of this study is to demonstrate the presence of early cognitive alterations in a series of patients with mTBI and to link these findings to different markers of brain damage.

METHODS

We conducted a prospective study of a consecutive series of patients with mTBI who were evaluated over a 12-month period. Forty-one (3.7%) of the 1144 included patients had experienced a concussion. Patients underwent a routine clinical evaluation and a brain computed tomography (CT) scan, and were also administered a standardised test for post-concussion symptoms within the first 24hours of mTBI and also 1 to 2 weeks later. The second assessment also included a neuropsychological test battery. The results of these studies were compared to those of a control group of 28 healthy volunteers with similar characteristics. Twenty patients underwent an MRI scan.

RESULTS

Verbal memory and learning were the cognitive functions most affected by mTBI. Seven out of the 20 patients with normal CT findings displayed structural alterations on MR images, which were compatible with diffuse axonal injury in 2 cases.

CONCLUSIONS

Results from this pilot study suggest that early cognitive alterations and structural brain lesions affect a considerable percentage of patients with post-concussion syndrome following mTBI.

Vemurafenib pharmacokinetics and its correlation with efficacy and safety in outpatients with advanced BRAF-mutated melanoma

Vemurafenib is a BRAF kinase inhibitor approved for first-line treatment of metastatic BRAF (V600) -mutant melanoma. However, data on the pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic (PK/PD) relationship are lacking. The aim of this prospective, multicenter study was to explore the PK/PD relationship for vemurafenib in outpatients with advanced BRAF-mutated melanoma. Fifty-nine patients treated with single-agent vemurafenib were prospectively analyzed. Vemurafenib plasma concentration (n = 159) was measured at days 15, 30, 60, and 90 after treatment initiation. Clinical and biological determinants (including plasma vemurafenib concentration) for efficacy and safety were assessed using Cox's model and multivariate stepwise logistic regression. Median progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival were 5.0 (95 % confidence interval [95 % CI] 2.0-6.0) and 11.0 (95% CI 7.0-16.0) months, respectively. Twenty-nine patients (49 %) experienced any grade ≥3 toxicity and the most frequent grade ≥2 toxicity was skin rash (37 %). Severe toxicities led to definitive discontinuation in seven patients (12 %). Grade ≥2 skin rash was not statistically associated with better objective response at day 60 (p = 0.06) and longer PFS (hazard ratio 0.47; 95 % CI 0.21-1.08; p = 0.075). Grade ≥2 skin rash was statistically increased in patients with ECOG  ≥ 1 (odds ratio 4.67; 95 % CI 1.39-15.70; p = 0.012). Vemurafenib concentration below 40.4 mg/L at day 15 was significantly associated with a shorter PFS (1.5 [0.5-5.5] vs. 4.5 [2-undetermined] months, p = 0.029). Finally, vemurafenib concentration was significantly greater in patients developing grade ≥2 rash (61.7 ± 25.0 vs. 36.3 ± 17.9 mg/L, p < 0.0001). These results suggest that early plasma drug monitoring may help identify outpatients at high risk of non-response or grade ≥ 2 skin rash.

Long-term outcome of insulin pump therapy: reduction of hypoglycaemia and impact on glycaemic control

AIMS

To determine the long-term outcome of continuous subcutaneous insulin infusion (CSII) in Type 1 diabetes according to Catalan National Health Service indications.

METHODS

Retrospective observational study including 178 patients with Type 1 diabetes who started CSII treatment in our centre (2003-2008). All patients were followed in our CSII programme for outpatients for at least 5 years. Data on annual HbA1c levels were collected, and the main indication for starting CSII was analysed.

RESULTS

Twenty-seven of 178 patients were excluded because of loss to follow-up or withdrawal from CSII, thus 151 patients (aged 37.4 ± 10.5 years, 64% women) were analysed. The main indications for starting CSII were suboptimal metabolic control (60.9%), severe hypoglycaemia/hypoglycaemia unawareness (25.5%) and others (13.6%). HbA1c was 64 ± 13 mmol/mol (8.0 ± 1.2%) at the start of CSII and 62 ± 13 mmol/mol (7.8 ± 1.2%) after 5 years in the total cohort (P = 0.1). The severe hypoglycaemia rates were 0.66 ± 1.61 and 0.17 ± 0.42 episodes/patient/year (P < 0.001). In patients with suboptimal metabolic control, HbA1c decreased from 68 ± 12 mmol/mol (8.4 ± 1.1%) to 64 ± 14 mmol/mol (8.0 ± 1.3%) (P = 0.016), with 37.4% of those in this group having an HbA1c ≤ 58 mmol/mol (7.5%) after 5 years. In patients starting CSII due to severe hypoglycaemia the problem was considered resolved in 93%, and in 64% of those starting CSII because of suboptimal glycaemic control, HbA1c improved significantly.

CONCLUSIONS

CSII therapy achieves and maintains its efficacy mainly in terms of reducing severe hypoglycaemia. In the whole group of patients, the reduction in HbA1c is transient and disappears after 5 years.

Effect of ageing on the availability of heavy metals in soils amended with compost and biochar: evaluation of changes in soil and amendment properties

Remediation strategies using soil amendments should consider the time dependence of metal availability to identify amendments that can sustainably reduce available pollutant concentrations over time. Drying-wetting cycles were applied on amendments, soils and soil + amendment mixtures, to mimic ageing at field level and investigate its effect on extractable Cd, Cu, Ni, Pb and Zn concentrations from three contaminated soils. The amendments investigated were municipal waste organic compost and biochars. The amendments, soils and mixtures were characterised by their physicochemical properties at different ageing times. The amendments were also characterised in terms of sorption capacity for Cd and Cu. The sorption capacity and the physicochemical properties of the amendments remained constant over the period examined. When mixed with the soils, amendments, especially the compost, immediately reduced the extractable metals in the soils with low pH and acid neutralisation capacity, due to the increase in pH and buffering capacity of the mixtures. The amendments had a relatively minor impact on the metal availability concentrations for the soil with substantially high acid neutralisation capacity. The most important changes in extractable metal concentrations were observed at the beginning of the experiments, ageing having a minor effect on metal concentrations when compared with the initial effect of amendments.

Happy@feet application for the management of diabetic foot osteomyelitis

OBJECTIVE

We aimed to develop and implement an application that could improve the management of patients presenting with diabetic foot osteomyelitis.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

Physicians from the multidisciplinary diabetic foot infection team and a software engineer first assessed the needs required for the infection management and application. An experimental version was then designed and progressively improved. A final version was implemented in clinical practice in 2013 by the multidisciplinary diabetic foot infection team of our university hospital.

RESULTS

The application, known as Happy@feet, helps gather and allows access to all required data for patient management, dispenses prescriptions (antibiotics, nursing care, blood tests), and helps follow the evolution of the wound. At the end of the consultation, a customizable letter is generated and may be directly sent to the persons concerned. This application also facilitates clinical and economic research. In 2014, Happy@feet was used to follow 83 patients during 271 consultations, 88 of which were day care hospitalizations.

CONCLUSION

The Happy@feet application is useful to manage these complex patients. Once the learning period is over, the time required for data collection is compensated by the rapid dispense of prescriptions and letters. Happy@feet can be used for research projects and will be used in a remote patient management project.

[Indications and results for protontherapy in cancer treatments]

Purpose was to summarize results for proton therapy in cancer treatment. A systematic review has been done by selecting studies on the website www.pubmed.com (Medline) and using the following keywords: proton therapy, radiation therapy, cancer, chordoma, chondrosarcoma, uveal melanoma, retinoblastoma, meningioma, glioma, neurinoma, pituitary adenoma, medulloblastoma, ependymoma, craniopharyngioma and nasal cavity. There are several retrospective studies reporting results for proton therapy in cancer treatments in the following indications: ocular tumors, nasal tumors, skull-based tumors, pediatric tumors. There is no prospective study except one phase II trial in medulloblastoma. The use of proton therapy for these indications is due to dosimetric advantages offering better tumor coverage and organ at risk sparing in comparison with photon therapy. Clinical results are historically at least as efficient as photon therapy with a better toxicity profile in pediatric tumors (cognitive and endocrine functions, radiation-induced cancer) and a better tumoral control in tumors of the nasal cavity. Clinical advantages of proton therapy counterbalance its cost especially in pediatric tumors. Proton therapy could be used in other types of cancer. Proton therapy showed good outcome in ocular, nasal tumors, pediatric, skull-based and paraspinal tumors. Because of some dosimetric advantages, proton therapy could be proposed for other indications in cancer treatments.

Prevalence of aortic valve dystrophy and insufficiency in a cohort of 255 HIV-positive patients followed-up in a cardiology department between 2012 and 2014

OBJECTIVES

To study valve appearance and the presence of valve disease in a cohort of people living with HIV (PLHIV).

DESIGN

A prospective study of PLHIV examined at the cardiology department of the Clermont Ferrand university hospital group (CHU) between January 1, 2012, and December 31, 2014. Were excluded those with a history of infection associated with a possible endocarditis.

METHODS

Demographic, medical characteristics and cardiovascular disease risk factors at time of cardiovascular examination and Doppler-echocardiography were recorded and analyzed.

RESULTS

In total, 903 PLHIV were examined in the infectious diseases department, 255 of whom were included. These consisted of 67 women (26.3%) and 188 men, of a mean age of 51.2±9.7years, in whom coronary artery disease was diagnosed in 18 patients (7.0%), two women and 16 men, representing a prevalence of 3.0% in females and 8.5% in males. The appearance of the aortic cusps was considered dystrophic in 14.1% of cases (36/255), dysplastic in two cases (0.8%), exhibiting a bicuspid deformity in one case. The prevalence of aortic valve abnormality was therefore 6.0% in the women (4/67) and 17.0% in the men (32/188). On facing off this data with the Kora Monica study findings, an increase in prevalence appears only to truly manifest after 50years of age. We registered 35 aortic insufficiency cases (13.7%), representing a higher incidence than that of the Framingham cohort, with age and masculine gender being the determining factors.

CONCLUSION

Valve disease, along with coronary artery disease, should be closely monitored in PLHIV.