ABSTRACT
Aims: Plasmalogens are unique phospholipid of biological membrane and is considered to play a potent role of intrinsic antioxidant. Atherosclerosis is associated with oxidative stress, but the correlation between plasmalogens and atherosclerosis is debatable. Therefore, this study aimed to assess the plasma and erythrocyte membrane phospholipids profile in patients with coronary heart diseases (CHD) undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Place and Duration of the Study: Vascular laboratory of Heart Center, Kyushu University Hospital, Fukuoka, Japan, from February to August 2016. Methodology: The plasma concentrations and erythrocyte membrane contents of phospholipids were quantified in patients with CHD (n = 30, group A) and age-matched controls (n = 38, group B) using high-performance liquid chromatography with evaporative light scattering detection method. Results: Plasma concentrations of plasmalogens in group A were significantly lower than those in group B. Similar findings were obtained from relative contents of plasmalogens in the erythrocyte membrane. Multiple regression models for plasmalogens yielded phospholipids other than plasmalogen as determinants of plasmalogens. Conclusions: This cross-sectional study indicated that plasma and erythrocyte membrane plasmalogens are reduced in patients with CHD undergoing PCI. Further longitudinal studies are required to elucidate the clinical role of intrinsic plasmalogens as a laboratory marker of oxidative stress and extrinsic plasmalogens as a novel therapy for atherosclerosis.
ABSTRACT
Background: Erythrocyte deformability is a major determinant of microcirculation in vivo. Although this concept was defined as filterability evaluated by flow-pressure curve constructed during a filtration process of erythrocyte suspension through a nickel mesh filter, the behaviours of erythrocytes during the filtration process are unknown. Aim: The present study aimed to obtain the better rheological understanding of the behaviours of erythrocytes passing through the nickel mesh filter. Methods: Blood sample was obtained from 8 apparently healthy subjects after obtaining informed consent. Erythrocyte filterability (%) was calculated as the flow rate of a hematocrit-adjusted erythrocyte suspension relative to that of saline at a filtration pressure of 100 mmH2O in flow-pressure curves obtained by nickel mesh filtration technique. Nickel mesh filters showing specific pore sizes of 6.00 ?m (step 1) and 5.31 ?m (step 2) were chosen, and two-step filtration protocol was performed. Erythrocytes counts (EC) were performed immediately before (ECpre) and after (ECpost) each filtration, and erythrocyte trapping rate (%) was defined as (ECpre – ECpost) / ECpre. Erythrocyte filterability and trapping rate were correlated in each step for data analysis. Results: ECpre was always greater than corresponding ECpost in every subject and in both steps. Erythrocyte filterability in the step 1 (91.8 ± 2.1%) was close to that in the step 2 (90.0 ± 10.3%). Likely, the trapping rate in the step 1 (77.8 ± 2.4%) was close to that in the step 2 (79.4 ± 7.0%). Mean filterability in step 1 did not differ from that in step 2 (p = 0.637), and the same was true with respect to the mean trapping rate (p = 0.516). However, individual comparison between the filterability and the trapping rate of both steps demonstrated no correlation. Conclusions: The present findings indicate that erythrocytes in suspension are trapped substantially by our nickel mesh filter. This trapping rate was not correlated to the erythrocyte filterability obtained by the flow-pressure curve during the nickel mesh filtration. Therefore, the erythrocyte trapping rate should be considered as a hemorheological parameter independent of the erythrocyte filterability.