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. 2012 Apr;33(4):452-8.
doi: 10.1038/aps.2011.196. Epub 2012 Feb 27.

Plasma ghrelin levels are closely associated with severity and morphology of angiographically-detected coronary atherosclerosis in Chineses patients with diabetes mellitus

Min Zhang  1 , Wei-yi Fang, Fang Yuan, Xin-kai Qu, Hua Liu, Ying-jia Xu, Hui Chen, Yong-fu Yu, Yan Shen, Zhi-chun Zheng
Affiliations

Plasma ghrelin levels are closely associated with severity and morphology of angiographically-detected coronary atherosclerosis in Chineses patients with diabetes mellitus

Min Zhang et al. Acta Pharmacol Sin. 2012 Apr.

Abstract

Aim: Low plasma ghrelin level was found to be associated with diabetes, and ghrelin was shown to inhibit pro-atherogenic changes in experimental models of atherosclerosis. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between plasma ghrelin levels and coronary atherosclerotic lesions in Chinese patients with diabetes.

Methods: Plasma ghrelin levels were measured using an ELISA kit. The severity of coronary artery disease (CAD) was determined via angiography. Composition of atherosclerotic plaques was detected via coronary CT angiography.

Results: A total of 178 patients with diabetes were recruited. Among the patients, 70 were diagnosed with acute coronary syndrome (ACS), 82 with stable angina pectoris (SAP) and 26 without coronary angiographic finding (controls). A negative correlation was found between ghrelin levels and the severity of the CAD, as determined via the Gensini score (r=-0.2434; P=0.0217). In diabetic patients with CAD and a complex lesion, the plasma ghrelin levels were significantly lower than in those with a simple lesion (ACS group: 3.81 ± 0.49 ng/mL vs 4.72 ± 0.50 ng/mL, P<0.0001; SAP group: 4.21 ± 0.52 ng/mL vs 4.76 ± 0.59 ng/mL, P=0.0397). Angiographically-detected complex lesion was an independent factor associated with ghrelin levels (adjusted beta coefficient=-0.67, 95% CI -0.97 to -0.37, P<0.0001).

Conclusion: Low plasma ghrelin level is closely related to angiographically-detected severity and the complex lesion morphology in Chinese diabetic patients with CAD.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
(A) Plasma ghrelin levels in control subjects, and ACS and SAP group in diabetic patients and control without diabetic patients. (B) Plasma ghrelin levels in diabetic patients with 1-vessel, 2-vessel, and 3-vessel CAD, control subjects and control without diabetic patients. (C) Relationship between plasma ghrelin levels and coronary angiographic morphology (ie simple or complex) in diabetic patients with SAP and ACS. Mean±SD.bP<0.05, cP<0.01.
Figure 2
Figure 2
(A) Angiographic images illustrating a long lesion in LAD (arrow). (B–C) Coronary CT angiography depicting a mixed plaque and the lesion in the angiographic image shown in A. (D) Angiographic image illustrating a localized lesion in LAD (arrow). (E–F) Coronary CT angiography depicting a calcified plaque match and the lesion in the angiographic image shown in D. (G) Angiographic image illustrating a localized lesion in LAD (arrow). (H–I) Coronary CT angiography revealing a non-calcified plaque and the lesion in the angiographic image shown in G.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Plasma ghrelin levels in diabetic patients with calcified, non-calcified, and mixed plaques using coronary CT angiography.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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