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Poznyak AV, Sukhorukov VN, Guo S, Postnov AY, Orekhov AN. Sex Differences Define the Vulnerability to Atherosclerosis. CLINICAL MEDICINE INSIGHTS-CARDIOLOGY 2023; 17:11795468231189044. [PMID: 37529084 PMCID: PMC10387777 DOI: 10.1177/11795468231189044] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/29/2023] [Accepted: 07/03/2023] [Indexed: 08/03/2023]
Abstract
For several decades, atherosclerosis has attracted the attention of researchers around the world. Even being a major cause of serious cardiovascular disease and events, atherosclerosis is still not fully understood. Despite the fact that the main players in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis are well known, many mechanisms of their implementation and interactions remain unknown. The same can be said about the risk factors for atherosclerosis. Many of them are known, but exactly how they work remains to be seen. The main objective of this review is to summarize the latest data on sex as a biological variable in atherosclerosis in humans and animals; to determine what we do not still know about how sex affects the process of growth and complications of atherosclerosis. In this review, we summarized data on sex differences at 3 atherosclerotic aspects: inflammation, vascular remodeling, and plaque morphology. With all overviewed data, we came to the conclusion on the atheroprotective role of female sex.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Vasiliy N Sukhorukov
- Laboratory of Angiopathology, Institute of General Pathology and Pathophysiology, Moscow, Russia
| | - Shuzhen Guo
- Diabetes Research Center, School of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Beijing University of Chinese, Beijing, China
| | - Anton Y Postnov
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Pathology of Cardiovascular System, Federal State Budgetary Scientific Institution «Petrovsky National Research Centre of Surgery» (FSBSI “Petrovsky NRCS”), Moscow, Russia
| | - Alexander N Orekhov
- Laboratory of Angiopathology, Institute of General Pathology and Pathophysiology, Moscow, Russia
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Atherosclerosis Burdens in Diabetes Mellitus: Assessment by PET Imaging. Int J Mol Sci 2022; 23:ijms231810268. [PMID: 36142181 PMCID: PMC9499611 DOI: 10.3390/ijms231810268] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/03/2022] [Revised: 08/31/2022] [Accepted: 09/03/2022] [Indexed: 01/14/2023] Open
Abstract
Arteriosclerosis and its sequelae are the most common cause of death in diabetic patients and one of the reasons why diabetes has entered the top 10 causes of death worldwide, fatalities having doubled since 2000. The literature in the field claims almost unanimously that arteriosclerosis is more frequent or develops more rapidly in diabetic than non-diabetic subjects, and that the disease is caused by arterial inflammation, the control of which should therefore be the goal of therapeutic efforts. These views are mostly based on indirect methodologies, including studies of artery wall thickness or stiffness, or on conventional CT-based imaging used to demonstrate tissue changes occurring late in the disease process. In contrast, imaging with positron emission tomography and computed tomography (PET/CT) applying the tracers 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) or 18F-sodium fluoride (NaF) mirrors arterial wall inflammation and microcalcification, respectively, early in the course of the disease, potentially enabling in vivo insight into molecular processes. The present review provides an overview of the literature from the more than 20 and 10 years, respectively, that these two tracers have been used for the study of atherosclerosis, with emphasis on what new information they have provided in relation to diabetes and which questions remain insufficiently elucidated.
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Castro SA, Muser D, Lee H, Hancin EC, Borja AJ, Acosta O, Werner TJ, Thomassen A, Constantinescu C, Høilund-Carlsen PF, Alavi A. Carotid artery molecular calcification assessed by [ 18F]fluoride PET/CT: correlation with cardiovascular and thromboembolic risk factors. Eur Radiol 2021; 31:8050-8059. [PMID: 33866386 DOI: 10.1007/s00330-021-07917-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/27/2020] [Revised: 02/26/2021] [Accepted: 03/19/2021] [Indexed: 01/07/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES There is growing evidence that sodium fluoride ([18F]fluoride) PET/CT can detect active arterial calcifications at the molecular stage. We investigated the relationship between arterial mineralization in the left common carotid artery (LCC) assessed by [18F]fluoride PET/CT and cardiovascular/thromboembolic risk. METHODS In total, 128 subjects (mean age 48 ± 14 years, 51% males) were included. [18F]fluoride uptake in the LCC was quantitatively assessed by measuring the blood-pool-corrected maximum standardized uptake value (SUVmax) on each axial slice. Average SUVmax (aSUVmax) was calculated over all slices and correlated with 10-year risk of cardiovascular events estimated by the Framingham model, CHA2DS2-VASc score, and level of physical activity (LPA). RESULTS The aSUVmax was significantly higher in patients with increased risk of cardiovascular (one-way ANOVA, p < 0.01) and thromboembolic (one-way ANOVA, p < 0.01) events, and it was significantly lower in patients with greater LPA (one-way ANOVA, p = 0.02). On multivariable linear regression analysis, age ( = 0.07, 95% CI 0.05 - 0.10, p < 0.01), body mass index ( = 0.02, 95% CI 0.01 - 0.03, p < 0.01), arterial hypertension ( = 0.15, 95% CI 0.08 - 0.23, p < 0.01), and LPA ( = -0.10, 95% CI -0.19 to -0.02, p=0.02) were independent associations of aSUVmax. CONCLUSIONS Carotid [18F]fluoride uptake is significantly increased in patients with unfavorable cardiovascular and thromboembolic risk profiles. [18F]fluoride PET/CT could become a valuable tool to estimate subjects' risk of future cardiovascular events although still major trials are needed to further evaluate the associations found in this study and their potential clinical usefulness. KEY POINTS • Sodium fluoride ([18F]fluoride) PET/CT imaging identifies patients with early-stage atherosclerosis. • Carotid [18F]fluoride uptake is significantly higher in patients with increased risk of cardiovascular and thromboembolic events and inversely correlated with the level of physical activity. • Early detection of arterial mineralization at a molecular level could help guide clinical decisions in the context of cardiovascular risk assessment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Simon A Castro
- Department of Radiology, Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, 3400 Spruce St, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA.,Cardiac Electrophysiology, Cardiovascular Medicine Division, Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA.,Quinnipiac University, St Vincent's Medical Center, Bridgeport, CT, USA
| | - Daniele Muser
- Cardiac Electrophysiology, Cardiovascular Medicine Division, Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Hwan Lee
- Department of Radiology, Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, 3400 Spruce St, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA.,Quinnipiac University, St Vincent's Medical Center, Bridgeport, CT, USA
| | - Emily C Hancin
- Department of Radiology, Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, 3400 Spruce St, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA.,Lewis Katz School of Medicine at Temple University, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Austin J Borja
- Department of Radiology, Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, 3400 Spruce St, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA.,Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Oswaldo Acosta
- Department of Radiology, Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, 3400 Spruce St, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA
| | - Thomas J Werner
- Department of Radiology, Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, 3400 Spruce St, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA
| | - Anders Thomassen
- Department of Nuclear Medicine, Odense University Hospital, Odense, Denmark.,Department of Clinical Research, University of Southern Denmark, Odense, Denmark
| | - Caius Constantinescu
- Department of Nuclear Medicine, Odense University Hospital, Odense, Denmark.,Department of Clinical Research, University of Southern Denmark, Odense, Denmark
| | - Poul Flemming Høilund-Carlsen
- Department of Nuclear Medicine, Odense University Hospital, Odense, Denmark.,Department of Clinical Research, University of Southern Denmark, Odense, Denmark
| | - Abass Alavi
- Department of Radiology, Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, 3400 Spruce St, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA.
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Abstract
Atherosclerosis is a chronic inflammatory vascular disease and the predominant cause of heart attack and ischemic stroke. Despite the well-known sexual dimorphism in the incidence and complications of atherosclerosis, there are relatively limited data in the clinical and preclinical literature to rigorously address mechanisms underlying sex as a biological variable in atherosclerosis. In multiple histological and imaging studies, overall plaque burden and markers of inflammation appear to be greater in men than women and are predictive of cardiovascular events. However, while younger women are relatively protected from cardiovascular disease, by the seventh decade, the incidence of myocardial infarction in women ultimately surpasses that of men, suggesting an interaction between sex and age. Most preclinical studies in animal atherosclerosis models do not examine both sexes, and even in those that do, well-powered direct statistical comparisons for sex as an independent variable remain rare. This article reviews the available data. Overall, male animals appear to have more inflamed yet smaller plaques compared to female animals. Plaque inflammation is often used as a surrogate end point for plaque vulnerability in animals. The available data support the notion that rather than plaque size, plaque inflammation may be more relevant in assessing sex-specific mechanisms since the findings correlate with the sex difference in ischemic events and mortality and thus may be more reflective of the human condition. Overall, the number of preclinical studies directly comparing plaque inflammation between the sexes is extremely limited relative to the vast literature exploring atherosclerosis mechanisms. Failure to include both sexes and to address age in mechanistic atherosclerosis studies are missed opportunities to uncover underlying sex-specific mechanisms. Understanding the mechanisms driving sex as a biological variable in atherosclerotic disease is critical to future precision medicine strategies to mitigate what is still the leading cause of death of men and women worldwide.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joshua J. Man
- Molecular Cardiology Research Institute, Tufts Medical Center, Boston, MA
- Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, MA
| | - Joshua A. Beckman
- Cardiovascular Division, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN
| | - Iris Z. Jaffe
- Molecular Cardiology Research Institute, Tufts Medical Center, Boston, MA
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Molecular imaging of carotid artery atherosclerosis with PET: a systematic review. Eur J Nucl Med Mol Imaging 2019; 47:2016-2025. [PMID: 31786626 DOI: 10.1007/s00259-019-04622-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/11/2019] [Accepted: 11/14/2019] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
PURPOSE To conduct a systematic review of articles on PET imaging of carotid atherosclerosis with emphasis on clinical usefulness and comparison with other imaging modalities. METHODS Research articles reporting carotid artery PET imaging with different radiotracers until 30 November 2018 were systematically searched for in Medline/PubMed, Scopus, Embase, Google Scholar, and Cochrane Library. Duplicates were removed, and editorials, case studies, and investigations on feasibility or reproducibility of PET imaging and of patients with end-stage diseases or immunosuppressive medications were omitted. After quality assessment of included articles using Joanna Briggs Institute checklists, all eligible articles were reviewed. RESULTS Of 1718 primary hits, 53 studies comprising 4472 patients, aged 47-91 years (78.8% males), were included and grouped under the following headlines: diagnostic performance, risk factors, laboratory findings, imaging modalities, and treatment. 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) (49/53) and 18F-sodium fluoride (NaF) (5/53) were the most utilized tracers to visualize carotid wall inflammation and microcalcification, respectively. Higher carotid FDG uptake was demonstrated in patients with than without symptomatic carotid atherosclerosis. Normal carotid arteries presented with the lowest FDG uptake. In symptomatic atherosclerosis, carotid arteries ipsilateral to a cerebrovascular event had higher FDG uptake than the contralateral carotid artery. FDG uptake was significantly associated with age, male gender, and body mass index in healthy individuals, and in addition with arterial hypertension, hypercholesterolemia, and diabetes mellitus in patients. Histological assessment indicated a strong correlation between microcalcification and NaF uptake in symptomatic patients. Histological evidence of calcification correlated inversely with FDG uptake, which was associated with increased macrophage and CD68 count, both accounting for increased local inflammatory response. CONCLUSION FDG-PET visualizes the inflammatory part of carotid atherosclerosis enabling risk stratification to a certain degree, whereas NaF-PET seems to indicate long-term consequences of ongoing inflammation by demonstrating microcalcification allowing discrimination of atherosclerotic from normal arteries and suggesting clinically significant carotid atherosclerosis.
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Lee H, Paeng JC, Kim KH, Cheon GJ, Lee DS, Chung JK, Kang KW. Correlation of FDG PET/CT Findings with Long-Term Growth and Clinical Course of Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm. Nucl Med Mol Imaging 2017; 52:46-52. [PMID: 29391912 DOI: 10.1007/s13139-017-0482-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/30/2016] [Revised: 02/21/2017] [Accepted: 04/04/2017] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Purpose Herein, we report characteristics of 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) uptake in abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAAs) during a long-term follow-up. In addition, we investigated the association between FDG uptake and the physician decision to perform an intervention. Methods We performed a retrospective review of 42 patients with AAAs who underwent FDG positron emission tomography (PET)/computed tomography (CT). The size of the AAA was measured in serial CT or PET/CT images. The long-term growth rate of AAAs was calculated by linear regression of the size change. Maximal SUV of the AAA (SUVAAA) and mean SUV of the blood pool (SUVBlood) were measured in PET/CT fusion images. To assess the FDG uptake of AAAs, the target-to-background ratio (TBR) was defined as the ratio of SUVAAA to SUVBlood. We compared FDG uptake of AAAs with the long-term growth rate of AAAs and clinical data. Results TBR was not significantly different between patients with and without significant growth (1.55 ± 0.20 vs. 1.57 ± 0.14; P = 0.5599). However, in patients with significant growth, TBR exhibited a significant positive correlation with the growth rate (r2 = 0.2601, P = 0.0306). TBR also exhibited a significant difference between patients with and without intervention (P = 0.0228). Conclusion FDG uptake of AAA is associated with long-term growth of AAAs in a specified group that exhibits growth. FDG PET/CT may only be effective in predicting the long-term growth of AAAs in specific subgroups of patients. It is also suggested that FDG PET is potentially related to the clinical conditions of AAA patients who need surgical or interventional treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hyunjong Lee
- 1Department of Nuclear Medicine, Seoul National University Hospital, 101 Daehak-ro, Jongno-gu, Seoul, 03080 South Korea
| | - Jin Chul Paeng
- 1Department of Nuclear Medicine, Seoul National University Hospital, 101 Daehak-ro, Jongno-gu, Seoul, 03080 South Korea
| | - Kyung Hwan Kim
- 2Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, Seoul National University Hospital, 101 Daehak-ro, Jongno-gu, Seoul, 03080 South Korea
| | - Gi Jeong Cheon
- 1Department of Nuclear Medicine, Seoul National University Hospital, 101 Daehak-ro, Jongno-gu, Seoul, 03080 South Korea
| | - Dong Soo Lee
- 1Department of Nuclear Medicine, Seoul National University Hospital, 101 Daehak-ro, Jongno-gu, Seoul, 03080 South Korea
| | - June-Key Chung
- 1Department of Nuclear Medicine, Seoul National University Hospital, 101 Daehak-ro, Jongno-gu, Seoul, 03080 South Korea
| | - Keon Wook Kang
- 1Department of Nuclear Medicine, Seoul National University Hospital, 101 Daehak-ro, Jongno-gu, Seoul, 03080 South Korea
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Rosas EA, Castro JB, Anaya DAV, del Moral Díez JJ, Bueso JSM, Niño AJ, Germán AGA, Rodríguez EDM, Sánchez CAG, González AM. Metabolic Syndrome and Diabetes Mellitus in Mexico: the Role of PET/CT in Endothelial Dysfunction and Cardiovascular Disease Detection. CURRENT CARDIOVASCULAR IMAGING REPORTS 2017. [DOI: 10.1007/s12410-017-9404-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
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Lee SJ, Paeng JC. Nuclear Molecular Imaging for Vulnerable Atherosclerotic Plaques. Korean J Radiol 2015; 16:955-66. [PMID: 26357491 PMCID: PMC4559792 DOI: 10.3348/kjr.2015.16.5.955] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/30/2015] [Accepted: 06/12/2015] [Indexed: 01/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Atherosclerosis is an inflammatory disease as well as a lipid disorder. Atherosclerotic plaque formed in vessel walls may cause ischemia, and the rupture of vulnerable plaque may result in fatal events, like myocardial infarction or stroke. Because morphological imaging has limitations in diagnosing vulnerable plaque, molecular imaging has been developed, in particular, the use of nuclear imaging probes. Molecular imaging targets various aspects of vulnerable plaque, such as inflammatory cell accumulation, endothelial activation, proteolysis, neoangiogenesis, hypoxia, apoptosis, and calcification. Many preclinical and clinical studies have been conducted with various imaging probes and some of them have exhibited promising results. Despite some limitations in imaging technology, molecular imaging is expected to be used both in the research and clinical fields as imaging instruments become more advanced.
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Affiliation(s)
- Soo Jin Lee
- Department of Nuclear Medicine, Seoul National University Hospital, Seoul 03080, Korea. ; Department of Nuclear Medicine, National Cancer Center, Goyang 10408, Korea
| | - Jin Chul Paeng
- Department of Nuclear Medicine, Seoul National University Hospital, Seoul 03080, Korea
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