Blood Levels of Inflammatory and Destructive Biomarkers in Coronary Atherosclerosis of Different Severity

Association study of matrix metalloproteinase 3 5A/6A polymorphism with in-stent restenosis after percutaneous coronary interventions in a Han Chinese population

Objective

We aimed to investigate the association between the 5A/6A promoter polymorphism in the matrix metalloproteinase 3 (MMP3) gene and in-stent restenosis (ISR) in a regional Chinese population.

Methods

A total of 818 patients who underwent primary implantation of drug-eluting stents were enrolled and received a 6-month follow-up angiography and DNA genotyping of the 5A/6A polymorphism.

Results

ISR was found in 36.9% of all patients (302 ISR vs. 516 no ISR). The genotype proportion of 6A6A was significantly increased in ISRs (74.2% ISR vs. 66.8% no ISR), whereas the allele frequency of 5A was significantly decreased in ISR patients (25.8%) compared with controls who did not undergo ISR (33.1%).

Conclusions

Our data indicate that the MMP3 6A6A genotype is a genetic susceptibility factor for ISR after coronary stent placement, but the 5A allele can lower the risk for patients within 6 months after stenting. Therefore, genotyping 5A/6A in the MMP3 promoter is suggested for patients who undergo coronary stent implantation.

Analysis of gene expression profile identifies potential biomarkers for atherosclerosis

The present study aimed to identify potential biomarkers for atherosclerosis via analysis of gene expression profiles. The microarray dataset no. GSE20129 was downloaded from the Gene Expression Omnibus database. A total of 118 samples from the peripheral blood of female patients was used, including 47 atherosclerotic and 71 non‑atherosclerotic patients. The differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in the atherosclerosis samples were identified using the Limma package. Gene ontology term and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes pathway analyses for DEGs were performed using the Database for Annotation, Visualization and Integrated Discovery tool. The recursive feature elimination (RFE) algorithm was applied for feature selection via iterative classification, and support vector machine classifier was used for the validation of prediction accuracy. A total of 430 DEGs in the atherosclerosis samples were identified, including 149 up‑ and 281 downregulated genes. Subsequently, the RFE algorithm was used to identify 11 biomarkers, whose receiver operating characteristic curves had an area under curve of 0.92, indicating that the identified 11 biomarkers were representative. The present study indicated that APH1B, JAM3, FBLN2, CSAD and PSTPIP2 may have important roles in the progression of atherosclerosis in females and may be potential biomarkers for early diagnosis and prognosis as well as treatment targets for this disease.

Relationship of blood levels of inflammatory and destructive biomarkers in coronary atherosclerosis with long-term results of surgical revascularization

The relationships between blood levels of inflammatory and destructive biomarkers (TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-6, IL-8, soluble CD40 ligand, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein, endothelial adhesion molecules, matrix metalloproteinase 3 and 9 and their tissue inhibitor type 1) were studied in men with coronary atherosclerosis before and 5 years after coronary artery bypass surgery. In men with unfavorable course of coronary atherosclerosis in the delayed period, the initial blood levels of C-reactive protein and TNF-α by 1.7 and 3.0 times surpassed those in patients with favorable course of the disease. Associations were revealed between elevated blood content of high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (p=0.01, odds ratio of 1.33) and IL-8 (p=0.02, odds ratio of 1.02) and deaths in the delayed period; IL-6 (p=0.01, odds ratio of 1.02) and cases of myocardial infarction; C-reactive protein (p=0.02, odds ratio of 1.24) and unfavorable course of the delayed period in general (death, myocardial infarction, worsening of angina pectoris functional class).

Effects of urotensin II and its specific receptor antagonist urantide on rat vascular smooth muscle cells

We investigated the effects of urantide, a receptor antagonist of urotensin II (U-II), on the expression of U-II and its receptor GPR14 in rat vascular smooth muscle cells. Vascular smooth muscle cells from rat thoracic aorta were cultured by explant method. Subjects in this experiment were divided into eight groups: normal control group (group C), U-II group (group M), positive control group (Flu group) and urantide-treated groups (10⁻¹⁰, 10⁻⁹, 10⁻⁸, 10⁻⁷ and 10⁻⁶ mol/L). Cultured vascular smooth muscle cells in vitro were studied by immunocytochemistry, biochemistry, and flow cytometry. U-II (10⁻⁸ mol/L) promoted the proliferation of vascular smooth muscle cells at each time point, influenced cell cycle, increased proliferation index and S-phase cell fraction, and dramatically promoted the expression of U-II and GPR14. In the concentration range from 10⁻¹⁰ to 10⁻⁶ mol/L, urantide dramatically inhibited the proliferation of vascular smooth muscle cells and the protein expression of U-II and GPR14, especially at a concentration of 10⁻⁶ mol/L. U-II, binding with its receptor GPR14, promotes vascular smooth muscle cells proliferation and migration, which can be inhibited by urantide. This study provides an evidence for understanding the effects of U-II and its receptor GPR14 on vascular smooth muscle cells.

Nuclear localization of matrix metalloproteinases

Matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) were originally identified as matrixin proteases that act in the extracellular matrix. Recent works have uncovered nontraditional roles for MMPs in the extracellular space as well as in the cytosol and nucleus. There is strong evidence that subspecialized and compartmentalized matrixins participate in many physiological and pathological cellular processes, in which they can act as both degradative and regulatory proteases. In this review, we discuss the transcriptional and translational control of matrixin expression, their regulation of intracellular sorting, and the structural basis of activation and inhibition. In particular, we highlight the emerging roles of various matrixin forms in diseases. The activity of matrix metalloproteinases is regulated at several levels, including enzyme activation, inhibition, complex formation and compartmentalization. Most MMPs are secreted and have their function in the extracellular environment. MMPs are also found inside cells, both in the nucleus, cytosol and organelles. The role of intracellular located MMPs is still poorly understood, although recent studies have unraveled some of their functions. The localization, activation and activity of MMPs are regulated by their interactions with other proteins, proteoglycan core proteins and / or their glycosaminoglycan chains, as well as other molecules. Complexes formed between MMPs and various molecules may also include interactions with noncatalytic sites. Such exosites are regions involved in substrate processing, localized outside the active site, and are potential binding sites of specific MMP inhibitors. Knowledge about regulation of MMP activity is essential for understanding various physiological processes and pathogenesis of diseases, as well as for the development of new MMP targeting drugs.