Biomarkers of vulnerable atheromatous plaques: translational medicine perspectives

Area of Science:

• Cardiovascular Medicine
• Biomarker Discovery
• Molecular Imaging

Background:

• Plaque rupture in cardiovascular disease is a primary cause of acute coronary syndromes, myocardial infarction, and stroke.
• Current treatments lack specific biomarkers to predict the risk of plaque rupture, highlighting an unmet clinical need.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review recent advances in identifying biomarkers for vulnerable atherosclerotic plaques.
• To explore the potential of both imaging and circulating molecular biomarkers in cardiovascular disease management.

Main Methods:

• Review of current literature on molecular imaging techniques for plaque detection.
• Analysis of biochemical and circulating biomarkers associated with plaque vulnerability.
• Evaluation of combined imaging and biomarker strategies for enhanced risk prediction.

Main Results:

• Significant research is ongoing in live detection, retrospective characterization, molecular imaging, and biomarker discovery.
• A combination of different imaging modalities (molecular, functional, anatomical) with circulating/biochemical markers is the emerging trend.
• This integrated approach is expected to yield the most valuable information for assessing plaque vulnerability.

Conclusions:

• There is a critical need for specific biomarkers to predict vulnerable atherosclerotic plaque rupture.
• Combining advanced imaging modalities with circulating biomarkers represents the most promising strategy for improving patient outcomes in cardiovascular disease.