Novel biomarkers with potential for cardiovascular risk reclassification

Lateral flow assays for detection of disease biomarkers

Early diagnosis saves lives in many diseases. In this sense, monitoring of biomarkers is crucial for the diagnosis of diseases. Lateral flow assays (LFAs) have attracted great attention among paper-based point-of-care testing (POCT) due to their low cost, user-friendliness, and time-saving advantages. Developments in the field of health have led to an increase of interest in these rapid tests. LFAs are used in the diagnosis and monitoring of many diseases, thanks to biomarkers that can be observed in body fluids. This review covers the recent advances dealing with the design and strategies for the development of LFA for the detection of biomarkers used in clinical applications in the last 5 years. We focus on various strategies such as choosing the nanoparticle type, single or multiple test approaches, and equipment for signal transducing for the detection of the most common biomarkers in different diseases such as cancer, cardiovascular, infectious, and others including Parkinson's and Alzheimer's diseases. We expect that this study will contribute to the different approaches in LFA and pave the way for other clinical applications.

Pregnancy in metabolic healthy and unhealthy obese women

INTRODUCTION

Obesity-associated adverse obstetric outcomes are well-known but still relatively rare and difficult to predict. Not all obese individuals are unhealthy; some have metabolically healthy obesity (MHO) and others have metabolic unhealthy obesity (MUO). Our aim was to investigate whether the MHO and MUO classification could be used for prediction of obesity-associated complications in pregnancy.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

We included 547 pregnant women with obesity, 2302 pregnant women with overweight and 5852 normal weight pregnant women. The women with obesity were classified as MUO (n = 181, 33.1%) or MHO (n = 366, 66.9%) based on first trimester blood pressure, lipoprotein levels and nonfasting glucose levels. The risk of obstetric outcomes was evaluated by multivariable logistic regression. We compared cardiovascular risk markers in blood between obese pregnant women with MUO and MHO.

RESULTS

Overall, 45.9% of women with MUO developed at least one adverse obesity-associated obstetric outcome, whereas corresponding proportions in women with MHO, overweight and normal weight were 35.0%, 27.6% and 21.2%, respectively. Following adjustment, the overall risk of at least one obesity-associated obstetric or perinatal complication in women with MUO, vs women with MHO, was increased (adjusted odds ratio 1.49, 95% confidence interval 1.03-2.15), but the predictive value of the model was low. Women with MUO had altered levels of cardiovascular risk markers such as cathepsin S, adiponectin, and cystatin C in comparison with women with MHO.

CONCLUSIONS

Women with MUO had an overall increased risk of adverse obstetric outcomes in comparison to women with MHO, but the classification had little relevance for risk prediction beyond that of body mass index.

Prognosis and Reclassification by YKL-40 in Stable Coronary Artery Disease

Background

The inflammatory biomarker YKL‐40 has previously been studied as a potential risk marker in cardiovascular disease. We aimed to assess the prognostic reclassification potential of serum YKL‐40 in patients with stable coronary artery disease.

Methods and Results

The main study population was the placebo group of the CLARICOR (Effect of Clarithromycin on Mortality and Morbidity in Patients With Ischemic Heart Disease) trial. The primary outcome was a composite of acute myocardial infarction, unstable angina pectoris, cerebrovascular disease, and all‐cause mortality. We used Cox proportional hazards regression models adjusted for C‐reactive protein level and baseline cardiovascular risk factors. Improvement in prediction by adding serum YKL‐40 to the risk factors was calculated using the Cox‐Breslow method and c‐statistic. A total of 2200 patients were randomized to placebo, with a follow‐up duration of 10 years. YKL‐40 was associated with an increased risk of the composite outcome (hazard ratio per unit increase in (YKL‐40) 1.13, 95% CI 1.03–1.24, P=0.013) and all‐cause mortality (hazard ratio 1.32, 95% CI 1.17–1.49, P<0.0001). Considering whether a composite‐outcome event was more likely to have, or not have, occurred to date, we found 68.4% of such predictions to be correct when based on the standard predictors, and 68.5% when serum YKL‐40 was added as a predictor. Equivalent results were obtained with c‐statistics.

Conclusions

Higher serum YKL‐40 was independently associated with an increased risk of adverse cardiovascular outcomes and mortality. Addition of YKL‐40 did not improve risk prediction in patients with stable coronary artery disease.

Clinical Trial Registration

URL: https://www.clinicaltrials.gov/. Unique identifier: NCT00121550.

Macrophage immunomodulation in chronic osteolytic diseases-the case of periodontitis

Periodontitis (PD) is a chronic osteolytic disease that shares pathogenic inflammatory features with other conditions associated with nonresolving inflammation. A hallmark of PD is inflammation-mediated alveolar bone loss. Myeloid cells, in particular polymorphonuclear neutrophils (PMN) and macrophages (Mac), are essential players in PD by control of gingival biofilm pathogenicity, activation of adaptive immunity, as well as nonresolving inflammation and collateral tissue damage. Despite mounting evidence of significant innate immune implications to PD progression and healing after therapy, myeloid cell markers and targets for immune modulation have not been validated for clinical use. The remarkable plasticity of monocytes/Mac in response to local activation factors enables these cells to play central roles in inflammation and restoration of tissue homeostasis and provides opportunities for biomarker and therapeutic target discovery for management of chronic inflammatory conditions, including osteolytic diseases such as PD and arthritis. Along a wide spectrum of activation states ranging from proinflammatory to pro-resolving, Macs respond to environmental changes in a site-specific manner in virtually all tissues. This review summarizes the existing evidence on Mac immunomodulation therapies for osteolytic diseases in the broader context of conditions associated with nonresolving inflammation, and discusses osteoimmune implications of Macs in PD.

Novel biomarkers for cardiovascular risk

Cardiovascular disease refers to different diseases involving the heart and/or the arteries and/or the veins. Cardiovascular disease, overall considered, is a notable source of morbidity and mortality worldwide. Therefore, several research studies are dedicated to explore, by means of biomarkers, the possiblity to calculate the cardiovascular risk both for the onset and for the complications of the related clinical manifestations such as coronary artery disease, carotid artery stenosis, peripheral artery disease, arterial aneurysm, chronic venous disease and venous thromboembolism. This review discusses the most updated information in the area of the novel biomarkers related to omics, imaging techniques and clinical data, that may help physicians in order to improve the knowledge and the management of the cardiovascular risk.

Concurrent Presence of Obstructive Sleep Apnea and Elevated Homocysteine Levels Exacerbate the Development of Hypertension: A KoGES Six-year Follow-up Study

Accumulating evidence has revealed that obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and high homocysteine (Hcy) levels play important roles in the increased risk of hypertension and cardiovascular disease. We investigated whether the presence of elevated Hcy levels among individuals with OSA increase the risk of hypertension in a cohort study. A total of 1825 participants were selected from the cohort study. A high homocysteine level (Hcy) was defined as those in the 75th percentile of Hcy levels of the study cohort. The prevalence of hypertension was higher among subjects with OSA and high Hcy levels than among the other groups stratified by the presence of OSA and high Hcy levels. The incidence of hypertension at 6-year follow-up was: Hcy[-]/OSA[-] vs. Hcy[+]/OSA[-] vs. Hcy[-]/OSA[+] vs. Hcy[+]/OSA[+], 14.2% vs. 19.8% vs. 24.2% vs. 36.1%. After adjusting for confounding factors, subjects with OSA and high Hcy levels had a 1.86-fold risk of developing hypertension compared to those without OSA and high Hcy levels. Moderate to severe OSA group with the highest tertile of Hcy levels had a 2.31-fold increased risk of developing hypertension. Interaction between Hcy and OSA on development of hypertension was significant, suggesting that these conditions may constitute an important determinant.

Combined value of red blood cell distribution width and global registry of acute coronary events risk score on predicting long-term major adverse cardiac events in STEMI patients undergoing primary PCI

The combined value of RDW and GRACE risk score for cardiovascular prognosis in ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) undergoing primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) has not been fully investigated. This study was designed to explore the combined value of RDW and GRACE risk score on predicting long-term major adverse cardiac event (Mace) in STEMI patients undergoing primary PCI. This study included 390 STEMI patients. The primary endpoint at the (33.5 ± 7.1) months follow-up was composed of cardiac death and nonfatal myocardial infarction. The relationship between clinical parameters and clinical outcomes was evaluated using Cox regression model and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis. Mace occurred in 126 (32.3%) patients including 54 (13.8%) cardiac deaths and 72 (18.5%) nonfatal myocardial infarctions. Patients in Mace group had significantly higher RDW and GRACE score than the patients in non-Mace group. According to the Cox model, RDW and GRACE score were the most important independent predictors of Mace and cardiac death. The best cut-off value for RDW to predict the occurrence of primary events was 13.25% (AUC = 0.694, 95% CI:0.639–0.750, P < 0.001) and that for GRACE score was 119.5 (AUC = 0.721, 95% CI:0.666–0.777, P < 0.001). The combination of RDW and GRACE score were more valuable (AUC = 0.775, 95% CI: 0.727–0.824, P < 0.001). Kaplan–Meier analysis provided significant prognostic information with the highest risk for cardiac death (Log-Rank χ² = 24.684, P < 0.001) in group with both high RDW (> 13.25%) and high GRACE score (> 119.5). The combination of RDW level and GRACE score may be valuable and simple independent predictors of Mace and cardiac death in STEMI patients undergoing primary PCI. They may be useful tools for risk stratification and may indicate long-term clinical outcomes.