Effects of intermittent negative pressure treatment on circulating vascular biomarkers in patients with intermittent claudication

Crizanlizumab in sickle cell disease

Vaso-occlusion in sickle cell disease (SCD) leads to a myriad of manifestations driving morbidity and mortality in patients with SCD. Increased leucocyte adhesion and P-selectin expression on platelets and endothelial cells is an inciting event that leads to obstruction of microcirculation by adhesion with rigid sickled red blood cells. Crizanlizumab is a first-in-class monoclonal antibody that inhibits P-selectin and has been shown to decrease the frequency of vaso-occlusive pain crises in patients with SCD in clinical trials. The role of crizanlizumab in other manifestations of SCD still needs further investigation.

The Role of P-Selectin in COVID-19 Coagulopathy: An Updated Review

In severe COVID-19, which is characterized by blood clots and neutrophil-platelet aggregates in the circulating blood and different tissues, an increased incidence of cardiovascular complications and venous thrombotic events has been reported. The inflammatory storm that characterizes severe infections may act as a driver capable of profoundly disrupting the complex interplay between platelets, endothelium, and leukocytes, thus contributing to the definition of COVID-19-associated coagulopathy. In this frame, P-selectin represents a key molecule expressed on endothelial cells and on activated platelets, and contributes to endothelial activation, leucocyte recruitment, rolling, and tissue migration. Briefly, we describe the current state of knowledge about P-selectin involvement in COVID-19 pathogenesis, its possible use as a severity marker and as a target for host-directed therapeutic intervention.