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Updated: Jun 13, 2026
Coronary Progenitor Cells and Soluble Biomarkers in Cardiovascular Prognosis after Coronary Angioplasty
Published on: January 28, 2020
[Changes of circulating endothelial progenitor cells in patients with coronary heart diseases before and after
Ying-Shi Luo1, Ju-Ying Qian, Lei Zhang
1Department of Cardiology, Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases, Shanghai 200032, China.
Insights
Endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) are lower in patients with coronary heart disease (CHD) and decrease with disease severity. Percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) increased EPCs in unstable angina patients.
Area of Science:
- Cardiovascular Research
- Regenerative Medicine
- Cell Biology
Context:
- Coronary heart disease (CHD) is a leading cause of mortality worldwide.
- Endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) play a crucial role in vascular repair and neovascularization.
- Reduced EPC levels are associated with various cardiovascular diseases.
Purpose:
- To compare circulating EPC levels between healthy individuals and CHD patients.
- To investigate the relationship between EPC numbers and CHD severity.
- To evaluate the impact of percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) on EPC levels in CHD patients.
Summary:
- Circulating EPCs (identified as CD133+/VEGFR-2+) were significantly lower in patients with stable angina pectoris (SAP), unstable angina pectoris (UA), and acute ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) compared to controls.
- EPC levels were negatively correlated with CHD severity, being lowest in the UA group.
- Following PCI, EPC numbers significantly increased in UA patients, suggesting a potential regenerative response.
Impact:
- This study highlights the diagnostic and prognostic value of EPCs in CHD.
- Findings suggest that PCI may stimulate endogenous repair mechanisms by increasing EPCs, particularly in unstable conditions.
- Further research into EPC modulation could lead to novel therapeutic strategies for CHD.
Objective:
To compare circulating endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) number between normal controls and patients with coronary heart diseases (CHD), and to explore the influence of percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) on the number of EPCs in patients with CHD.
Methods:
A total of 48 hospitalized patients with CHD were enrolled and divided into three groups, including stable angina pectoris (SAP) group, unstable angina pectoris (UA) group, acute ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) group. Patients with normal coronary angiography served as controls. The percentage of EPCs in peripheral blood nucleated cells was measured at admission and immediately after and 24 hours after PCI in CHD patients by double-color flow cytometry analysis. EPCs were identified with CD133(+)/VEGFR-2(+).
Results:
At admission, the percentage of EPCs in peripheral blood nucleated cells was significantly lower in SAP group (0.043% +/- 0.043%), UA group (0.014% +/- 0.018%) and STEMI group (0.040% +/- 0.036%)than that in the control group (0.111% +/- 0.078%, all P < 0.01). The number of EPCs in UA group was significantly lower than that in the SAP group (P < 0.05). In the UA group, the number of EPCs at 24 hours after PCI (0.054% +/- 0.045%) was significantly higher than before operation (0.014% +/- 0.018%, P < 0.01) and tended to be higher than the value immediately after PCI (0.028% +/- 0.041%, P > 0.05). The before and after PCI EPCs numbers were similar in SAP and STEMI groups (all P > 0.05).
Conclusion:
The number of peripheral EPCs in patients with CHD is lower than that in normal subjects and negatively related with severity of coronary heart disease. The number of circulating EPCs increased post PCI in patients with unstable angina pectoris.
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