No Significant Association Between Plasma Endosialin Levels and the Presence or Severity of Coronary Artery Disease.

Background: Endosialin, also called tumor endothelial marker-1 or CD248, is a transmembrane glycoprotein that is suggested to play a role in inflammation as well as tumor progression. Endosialin expression was also reported to be upregulated in human atherosclerotic lesions. However, no study has reported blood endosialin levels in patients with coronary artery disease (CAD). Methods: We investigated the association between plasma endosialin levels and the presence or severity of CAD in 376 patients who underwent elective coronary angiography for suspected CAD. The severity of CAD was represented as the numbers of stenotic coronary vessels and segments. Results: Of the 376 study patients, CAD was found in 210 patients (one-vessel disease (1-VD), n = 90; two-vessel disease (2-VD), n = 65; and three-vessel disease (3-VD), n = 55). Compared with 166 patients without CAD, 210 patients with CAD had higher C-reactive protein (CRP) levels (median 0.57 vs. 0.43 mg/L, P = 0.007). However, endosialin levels did not significantly differ between patients with and without CAD (0.91 vs. 0.92 ng/mL, P = 0.693). A stepwise increase in CRP levels was found depending on the number of > 50% stenotic vessels: 0.43 in CAD(-), 0.52 in 1-VD, 0.57 in 2-VD, and 0.58 mg/L in 3-VD (P = 0.019). No marked difference was found in endosialin levels among four groups of CAD(-), 1-VD, 2-VD, and 3-VD (0.92, 0.89, 0.98, and 0.87 ng/mL, respectively, P = 0.785). Moreover, no significant correlation was found between endosialin levels and the numbers of > 50% and > 25% stenotic segments or CRP levels. In multivariate analysis, endosialin levels were not a significant factor associated with CAD independent of atherosclerotic risk factors. Conclusions: Plasma endosialin levels in patients with CAD were found to be not higher than in those without CAD and to be not significantly associated with the presence or severity of CAD.

Associations between Green Tea Consumption and Coffee Consumption and the Prevalence of Coronary Artery Disease.

Green tea and coffee contain various bioactive compounds (e.g., polyphenols), and their consumption has been proposed to decrease the risk of cardiovascular diseases. Here, we investigated the associations between the consumption of green tea and that of coffee and the prevalence of coronary artery disease (CAD) in Japanese patients. The study group was 612 patients who underwent coronary angiography at Tokyo Medical Center between July 2008 and February 2017. CAD was confirmed in 388 of the patients: one-vessel disease (1-VD, n=166); two-vessel disease (2-VD, n=112); three-vessel disease (3-VD, n=110). Myocardial infarction (MI) was found in 138 patients. After adjustment for well-known atherosclerotic risk factors and other dietary habits, greater green tea consumption was significantly inversely associated with CAD prevalence (p for trend=0.044), and the patients who drank >3 cups/d had a lower prevalence of CAD compared to those who drank <1 cup/d (odds ratio [OR]: 0.54, 95% CI: 0.30-0.98). Greater green tea consumption (>3 cups/d) was also associated with a decreased prevalence of 3-VD (OR: 0.49, 95% CI: 0.24-0.98, p-trend=0.047) and MI (OR: 0.51, 95% CI: 0.27-0.97, p-trend=0.037). In contrast, coffee consumption was not associated with CAD or MI. In subgroup analyses, the inverse association between green tea consumption and CAD or MI was found in the high intake groups of vegetables or fruits but not in the low intake groups of vegetables or fruits. These results suggest a beneficial effect of green tea consumption, especially with a diet rich in vegetables and fruits, against coronary atherosclerosis in Japanese.

High Plasma Levels of Legumain in Patients with Complex Coronary Lesions.

AIM: The degradation of the vascular extracellular matrix is important for atherosclerosis. The cysteine protease legumain was shown to be upregulated in atherosclerotic plaques, especially unstable plaques. However, no study has reported blood legumain levels in patients with coronary artery disease (CAD). METHODS: We investigated plasma legumain and C-reactive protein (CRP) levels in 372 patients undergoing elective coronary angiography. RESULTS: CAD was found in 225 patients. Compared with patients without CAD, those with CAD had higher CRP levels (median 0.60 [0.32, 1.53] vs. 0.46 [0.22, 0.89] mg/L, P＜0.001), but no difference was found in legumain levels between patients with and without CAD (median 5.08 [3.87, 6.82] vs. 4.99 [3.84, 6.88] ng/mL). A stepwise increase in CRP was found depending on the number of ＞50% stenotic vessels: 0.55 mg/L in 1-vessel, 0.71 mg/L in 2-vessel, and 0.86 mg/L in 3-vessel diseases (P＜0.001). However, legumain did not differ among 1-, 2-, and 3-vessel diseases (5.20, 4.93, and 5.01 ng/mL, respectively). Of 225 patients with CAD, 40 (18%) had complex lesions. No difference was found in CRP levels between patients with CAD with and without complex lesions (0.60 [0.34, 1.53] vs. 0.60 [0.32, 1.51] mg/L). Notably, legumain levels were higher in patients with CAD with complex lesions than without such lesions (6.05 [4.64, 8.64] vs. 4.93 [3.76, 6.52] ng/mL, P＜0.01). In multivariate analysis, legumain levels were not a factor for CAD, but were a factor for complex lesions. The odds ratio for complex lesions was 2.45 (95% CI=1.26-4.79) for legumain ＞5.5 ng/mL. CONCLUSION: Plasma legumain levels were associated with the presence of complex coronary lesions.