ABSTRACT
Objective To investigate the effect of tanshinone Ⅱ A sulfonate on the expression of Fas (CD95) and FasL (CD178) of the peripheral blood T lymphocytes in patients with coronary heart disease (CHD). Methods One hundred and twenty-six cases of CHD patients in our hospital were divided into 3 groups: 42 cases of stable angina pectoris (SAP) group, 46 cases of unstable angina (UA) group and 38 cases of acute myocardial infarction (AMI) group, and 45 cases of healthy volunteers as the control group. The CHD patients received 2-week treatment of Tanshinone with 60 mg / day according to the conventional treatment. Expressions of Fas and FasL in T lymphocytes were determined before and after treatment of Tanshinone. Results The FasL expression of peripheral blood T cells was not significant changed before and after treatment of Tanshinone among 4 groups (P > 0.05). Significant differences of Fas expression in peripheral blood T cells were showed among 4 groups (P < 0.01). Compared with the control group, expression of Fas was increased in the 3 CHD groups (P < 0.05). Compared with the SAP group, expression of Fas was significantly increased in the UA group and in the AMI group (P < 0.05, respectively). Compared with the UA group, Fas expression was also markedly increased in the AMI group (P < 0.05). Conclusion Different phenotypes of CHD patients can be defined by the Fas / FasL system. Tanshinone can block the Fas-FasL pathway to reduce the apoptosis of activated T lymphocytes, however, the potential mechanism remains unknown.