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Published on: May 23, 2025
Acute coronary syndrome is associated with a substantial change in the platelet lipidome
Tobias Harm1, Alexander Bild1, Kristina Dittrich2
1Department of Cardiology and Angiology, University Hospital Tübingen, Eberhard Karls University Tübingen, Otfried-Müller-Straße 10, 72076 Tübingen, Germany.
Insights
Platelet lipids change significantly in coronary artery disease (CAD). Specific glycerophospholipids increase in acute coronary syndrome (ACS), promoting platelet activation and thrombus formation, impacting cardiovascular events.
Area of Science:
- Biochemistry
- Cardiovascular Medicine
- Lipidomics
Background:
- Platelets are crucial in coronary artery disease (CAD) pathophysiology.
- Enhanced platelet activation increases cardiovascular event risk.
- Platelet lipid profiles significantly change in CAD patients.
Purpose of the Study:
- Investigate platelet lipidome alterations in CAD using untargeted liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry.
- Compare lipid profiles between acute coronary syndrome (ACS) and chronic coronary syndrome (CCS) patients.
- Identify specific lipids involved in ACS pathophysiology and their impact on platelet function.
Main Methods:
- Characterized the platelet lipidome in a cohort of 139 CAD patients.
- Utilized untargeted liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry for lipid profiling.
- Analyzed differences in lipid profiles between ACS and CCS patient groups.
Main Results:
- Identified significant differences in platelet lipids between ACS and CCS patients.
- Found 7 platelet glycerophospholipids significantly up-regulated and 25 down-regulated in ACS compared to CCS.
- The prominent up-regulated lipid, PC18:0, enhanced platelet activation and thrombus formation.
Conclusions:
- The platelet lipidome is altered in ACS, with glycerophospholipids being primarily up-regulated.
- Medium-chain lipid alterations in platelets may contribute to ACS pathophysiology.
- These findings highlight potential therapeutic targets for managing ACS.
Aims:
Platelets play a key role in the pathophysiology of coronary artery disease (CAD) and patients with enhanced platelet activation are at increased risk to develop adverse cardiovascular events. Beyond reliable cardiovascular risk factors such as dyslipoproteinaemia, significant changes of platelet lipids occur in patients with CAD. In this study, we investigate the platelet lipidome by untargeted liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry, highlighting significant changes between acute coronary syndrome (ACS) and chronic coronary syndrome (CCS) patients. Additionally, we classify the platelet lipidome, spotlighting specific glycerophospholipids as key players in ACS patients. Furthermore, we examine the impact of significantly altered lipids in ACS on platelet-dependent thrombus formation and aggregation.
Methods And Results:
In this consecutive study, we characterized the platelet lipidome in a CAD cohort (n = 139) and showed significant changes of lipids between patients with ACS and CCS. We found that among 928 lipids, 7 platelet glycerophospholipids were significantly up-regulated in ACS, whereas 25 lipids were down-regulated compared to CCS. The most prominent up-regulated lipid in ACS, PC18:0 (PC 10:0-8:0), promoted platelet activation and ex vivo platelet-dependent thrombus formation.
Conclusions:
Our results reveal that the platelet lipidome is altered in ACS and up-regulated lipids embody primarily glycerophospholipids. Alterations of the platelet lipidome, especially of medium chain lipids, may play a role in the pathophysiology of ACS.
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