Increased glycoprotein acetylation is associated with high cardiac event rates: Analysis using coronary computed tomography angiography

Cardiometabolic disease risk markers are increased following burn injury in children

Introduction

Burn injury in children causes prolonged systemic effects on physiology and metabolism leading to increased morbidity and mortality, yet much remains undefined regarding the metabolic trajectory towards specific health outcomes.

Methods

A multi-platform strategy was implemented to evaluate the long-term immuno-metabolic consequences of burn injury combining metabolite, lipoprotein, and cytokine panels. Plasma samples from 36 children aged 4-8 years were collected 3 years after a burn injury together with 21 samples from non-injured age and sex matched controls. Three different ¹H Nuclear Magnetic Resonance spectroscopic experiments were applied to capture information on plasma low molecular weight metabolites, lipoproteins, and α-1-acid glycoprotein.

Results

Burn injury was characterized by underlying signatures of hyperglycaemia, hypermetabolism and inflammation, suggesting disruption of multiple pathways relating to glycolysis, tricarboxylic acid cycle, amino acid metabolism and the urea cycle. In addition, very low-density lipoprotein sub-components were significantly reduced in participants with burn injury whereas small-dense low density lipoprotein particles were significantly elevated in the burn injured patient plasma compared to uninjured controls, potentially indicative of modified cardiometabolic risk after a burn. Weighted-node Metabolite Correlation Network Analysis was restricted to the significantly differential features (q <0.05) between the children with and without burn injury and demonstrated a striking disparity in the number of statistical correlations between cytokines, lipoproteins, and small molecular metabolites in the injured groups, with increased correlations between these groups.

Discussion

These findings suggest a 'metabolic memory' of burn defined by a signature of interlinked and perturbed immune and metabolic function. Burn injury is associated with a series of adverse metabolic changes that persist chronically and are independent of burn severity and this study demonstrates increased risk of cardiovascular disease in the long-term. These findings highlight a crucial need for improved longer term monitoring of cardiometabolic health in a vulnerable population of children that have undergone burn injury.

Role of Posttranslational Modifications of Proteins in Cardiovascular Disease

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) has become a leading cause of mortality and morbidity globally, making it an urgent concern. Although some studies have been performed on CVD, its molecular mechanism remains largely unknown for all types of CVD. However, recent in vivo and in vitro studies have successfully identified the important roles of posttranslational modifications (PTMs) in various diseases, including CVD. Protein modification, also known as PTMs, refers to the chemical modification of specific amino acid residues after protein biosynthesis, which is a key process that can influence the activity or expression level of proteins. Studies on PTMs have contributed directly to improving the therapeutic strategies for CVD. In this review, we examined recent progress on PTMs and highlighted their importance in both physiological and pathological conditions of the cardiovascular system. Overall, the findings of this review contribute to the understanding of PTMs and their potential roles in the treatment of CVD.

Psoriasis and Cardiometabolic Comorbidities: An Evaluation of the Impact of Systemic Treatments in Randomized Clinical Trials

The association between psoriasis, metabolic syndrome, and cardiovascular disease is well established. The shared pathways between psoriasis, metabolic syndrome, and atherosclerosis suggest that treatments targeting the inflammatory pathways of psoriasis may also be beneficial in the treatment of associated cardiometabolic comorbidities. This paper reviews the most recent data regarding the impact of systemic psoriasis treatments on comorbid cardiovascular and metabolic disease. Data from randomized clinical trials with systemic and biologic agents are presented. Overall, studies demonstrate beneficial effects on several cardiometabolic markers and risk factors in psoriasis patients; however, longer randomized controlled trials to characterize the direct benefit for cardiovascular outcomes are needed.

Gamma-glutamyl transferase to albumin ratio can predict severity of coronary artery disease detected by coronary computed tomography angiography

OBJECTIVE

Gamma-glutamyl transferase (GGT) to albumin ratio (GAR) has been shown to be helpful to diagnose and determine the severity of coronary artery disease (CAD). Coronary computed tomography angiography (CCTA) is a guide recommended non-invasive test that provides information about the presence, severity, and morphology of coronary plaques. In this study, our main aim was to investigate the relationship between the presence, morphology, and severity of coronary plaques detected via CCTA and GAR in patients with low to moderate risk for undiagnosed CAD.

METHODS

Nine hundred and sixty six patients were included who underwent CCTA. The severity of CAD and plaque morphology were investigated. CT-adapted Leaman score (CT-LeSc) was calculated to determine the extent of the CAD. The study population was further evaluated in three groups according to tertiles of GAR.

RESULTS

Atherosclerotic plaques were more common in the male gender and older patients with conventional cardiovascular risk factors. GAR was significantly lower in patients with normal CCTA than in patients with a non-obstructive plaque or obstructive plaque on CCTA. Patients in upper GAR tertiles had a higher coronary calcium score (CACS) and CT-LeSc. GAR was one of the independent predictors to predict severe stenotic plaque and high CACS.

CONCLUSION

GAR can independently predict the presence, extent, and severity of CAD determined by CT-LeSc. We believe as a cheap, safe, and widely available tool, GAR would be useful in the diagnosis of CAD.