ABSTRACT
<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To compare the value of apolipoprotein B (apoB) and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) in assessing the risk of coronary heart disease in patients with inconsistent apoB and LDL-C levels.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>In a total of 603 patients undergoing coronary angiography, apoB and LDL-C levels were categorized into high and low levels relative to the median levels of apoB and LDL-C, based on which the patients were divided into 4 groups with low apoB/low LDL-C, low apoB/high LDL-C, high apoB/low LDL-C, or high apoB/high LDL-C. According to the results of coronary angiography, we evaluated the number of coronary artery branches with lesions and the severity of coronary artery stenosis in the 4 groups to assess the correlation of apoB and LDL-C with cardiovascular risks.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>We found significant differences in the number of coronary artery branches with lesions and the severity of coronary artery stenosis among the 4 groups (P<0.05). The number of coronary artery branches involved and the severity of stenosis differed significantly between patients with consistently high and low apoB/LDL-C levels (P<0.005). Compared with those with low apoB/low LDL-C levels, the patients with high apoB/low LDL-C levels showed a significantly greater number of coronary artery branches with lesions (P=0.017) and more severe stenosis (P=0.034), but such differences were not found in patients with low apoB/high LDL-C levels. Pearson correlation analysis identified LDL-C and apoB as the risk factors for cardiovascular disease with areas under the ROC curve of 0.579 (P=0.014) and 0.589 (P=0.006), respectively.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>In patients with inconsistent levels of apoB and LDL-C, apoB and LDL-C levels are both risk factors of coronary heart disease in close relation with the disease severity. LDL-C and apoB are comparable for their important values in predicting the risk of coronary heart disease.</p>
ABSTRACT
Objective To investigate the effect of serous amyloid P (SAP) component on serum paraoxonase 1 (PON1) activity, serum monocyte chemotactic protein 1 (MCP-1) expression and atherosclerosis progression in ApoE-/- mice, and explore the possible mechanisms thereof. Methods Six male C57/BL6 mice were fed with chow diet as normal control group. Twelve male ApoE-/- mice fed with western diet for 12 weeks were used to establish animal models of atherosclerosis, and then randomly divided into two groups (6 each): SAP and PBS group. Mice in SAP group were treated (i.p.) with SAP (6mg/g) every other day from day 0 to day 14. Mice in normal and PBS group were treated (i.p.) with PBS (same volume as SAP group) every other day from day 0 to day 14. The blood specimen and aorta vascular tissues were collected at the 16th week after the first immunization. Serum lipids and PON1 activity were assessed. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was used to detect the expression of serum SAP and MCP-1. Hematoxylin-eosin (HE) staining was used to observe the formation of atherosclerotic plaque. Oil red O staining was performed to observe the lipid accumulation, and immunohistochemical staining was performed to detect the SAP expression in the atherosclerotic plaque. Results Compared with the normal group, the serum PON1 activity reduced significantly while MCP-1 expression increased (P<0.01), and a large number of plaques formed in the blood vessels of mice in SAP and PBS group. Compered with PBS group, SAP treatment markedly improved the PON1 activity (P=0.046) and down-regulated MCP-1 expression (P=0.032). Furthermore, SAP treatment significantly reduced atherosclerotic plaque area (P=0.001) and oil red O positive area (P=0.03). Conclusion SAP could mitigate atherosclerotic lesion through improving the property of PON1 and down-regulating the level of MCP-1.