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Evaluation of Growth Differentiation Factor-15 in Patients with or without Coronary Artery Disease
Shima Hassanzadeh Daloee1, Nima Nakhaei2, Mahdy Hassanzadeh Daloee3
1Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, Vascular Surgery Research Center, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran. hasanzadedaloeem@mums.ac.ir.
Insights
Serum Growth-differentiation factor-15 (GDF-15) levels were significantly higher in coronary artery disease (CAD) patients. GDF-15 may serve as a valuable biomarker for predicting CAD.
Area of Science:
- Biochemistry
- Cardiology
- Biomarkers
Background:
- Growth-differentiation factor-15 (GDF-15) is a cytokine in the transforming growth factor-beta superfamily.
- GDF-15 is expressed in macrophages within human atherosclerotic plaques.
Purpose of the Study:
- To compare serum GDF-15 levels between patients with coronary artery disease (CAD) and a control group.
- To evaluate the potential of GDF-15 as a diagnostic marker for CAD.
Main Methods:
- A cross-sectional study involving 176 participants (88 CAD patients, 88 controls).
- Collection of clinical, demographic, and blood parameters including hs-CRP, LDL-C, and GDF-15.
- Statistical analysis to compare GDF-15 levels and assess diagnostic performance.
Main Results:
- Serum GDF-15 levels were significantly elevated in CAD patients compared to controls (P<0.001).
- High-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) were also higher in CAD patients.
- The receiver operating characteristic curve analysis showed a satisfactory area under the curve of 0.9, with an optimal GDF-15 cut-off of 1233 ng/L for CAD diagnosis (71% sensitivity, 71% specificity).
Conclusions:
- Serum GDF-15 is a potential predictive biomarker for coronary artery disease.
- Elevated GDF-15 levels are associated with the presence of CAD.
Background:
Growth-differentiation factor-15 (GDF-15) is a distant member of the transforming growth factor-beta cytokine superfamily expressed in human atherosclerotic plaque macrophages. In this study, we sought to compare GDF-15 between patients with coronary artery disease and control group.
Methods:
In this cross-sectional study, 176 subjects were enrolled, consisted of 88 coronary artery disease patients (CAD group) and 88 non-CAD participants (control group. Clinical and demographic data, comprising of family history of CAD, history, and lifestyle factors, hypertension, diabetes, and some blood parameters (e.g. glucose, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C)), triglyceride, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP)).
Results:
Mean age of the patients was 55.5±11.1 years (age range: 28-80 years). Of all the participants, 91 (51.7%) were male and 85 (48.3%) female. Hs-CRP, LDL-C, and GDF-15 levels were significantly higher in the CAD patients (P=0.091, P=0.008, and P<0.001, respectively). Total cholesterol, hematocrit, and hemoglobin were significantly higher in the controls (P=0.002, P=0.011, and P=0.055, respectively). The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve yielded the satisfactory result of 0.9 (95% CI, 0.8-0.9; P<0.001). The optimum cut-off value of GDF-15 was 1233 ng/L with 71% specificity and 71% sensitivity for CAD diagnosis.
Conclusion:
These data suggest that serum GDF-15 might be useful in prediction of CAD.
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