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Relationship between the extent of coronary artery disease and indicators of free radical activity
A B Bridges1, N A Scott, T H Pringle
1Department of Medicine, Ninewells Hospital and Medical School, Dundee, Scotland.
Insights
Patients with coronary artery disease (CAD) show increased markers of free radical (FR) activity, including malondialdehyde (MDA), glutathione (GSH), and superoxide dismutase (SOD). However, FR marker levels did not correlate with the severity of CAD.
Area of Science:
- Biochemistry
- Cardiology
- Oxidative Stress Research
Background:
- Coronary artery disease (CAD) patients exhibit markers of increased free radical (FR) activity compared to healthy individuals.
- The correlation between the extent of CAD and the levels of FR markers remains unclear.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the relationship between the severity of coronary artery disease (CAD) and specific markers of free radical (FR) activity.
- To compare FR marker levels in patients with angiographically proven CAD, those with angina but normal angiograms, and healthy controls.
Main Methods:
- Measured plasma malondialdehyde (MDA), plasma thiols (PSH), red blood cell (RBC) glutathione (GSH), and RBC superoxide dismutase (SOD) in 58 CAD patients and 50 controls.
- Utilized coronary angiography to assess CAD severity and employed regression analysis to examine correlations.
Main Results:
- No significant correlation was found between MDA, PSH, GSH, or SOD levels and the angiographic grade of CAD.
- Patients with CAD and those with angina but normal angiograms showed significantly elevated MDA levels compared to controls.
- CAD patients had significantly lower GSH levels and significantly higher SOD levels than controls.
Conclusions:
- While CAD is associated with altered free radical activity markers (MDA, GSH, SOD), these markers do not correlate with the angiographic severity of the disease.
- Elevated MDA and SOD, and reduced GSH, are indicative of oxidative stress in patients with coronary artery disease.
Abstract:
Clinical studies have demonstrated that patients with coronary artery disease (CAD) have markers suggestive of increased free radical (FR) activity when compared with normal subjects; however, the relationship between the extent of CAD and level of FR markers is not known. The following indices of FR activity, plasma malondialdehyde (MDA), plasma thiols (PSH), red blood cell (RBC) glutathione (GSH), and RBC superoxide dismutase (SOD) were measured in 58 patients admitted for coronary angiography and in 50 matched controls. Regression analysis demonstrated no significant correlation between MDA, PSH, GSH, or SOD, and the angiographic grade which indicated the severity of the CAD. Patients with angiographically proven CAD (median 7.9 nmol/ml IQR 6.9-9.2) and patients with a history suggestive of angina pectoris but normal coronary angiograms (median 8.4 nmol/ml IQR 7.4-9.9) had significantly raised MDA levels compared with the controls (median 6.85 nmol/ml IQR 6.1-7.4), p less than 0.001 and p less than 0.005, respectively. The patients with angiographically proven CAD had significantly lower GSH levels (median 1461 microM IQR 1348-1709, p less than 0.002) compared with the controls (median 1754 microM IQR 1492-1930). Significantly raised SOD levels also were detected in patients with angiographically proven CAD (median 121.8 U/ml RBC, IQR 113.8-143.9) and in patients with a history of suggestive of angina pectoris but normal coronary angiograms (median 146 U/ml RBC, IQR 96.8-156.7) when compared with controls (median 96.3 U/ml RBC, IQR 82.4-115.6), p less than 0.001 and p less than 0.02, respectively.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)