Prognostic significance of plasma concentrations of transforming growth factor-beta in patients with coronary artery disease.
BACKGROUND
Cytokines play an important role in modulating inflammatory and proliferative responses, including atherosclerosis. Transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-beta) and macrophage-colony stimulating factor (M-CSF) are one of the major antiinflammatory and proinflammatory cytokines, respectively. We have previously demonstrated that plasma concentrations of TGF-beta are decreased while those of M-CSF are increased in patients with coronary artery disease (CAD). In this study, we examined whether those alterations in plasma levels of cytokines have a prognostic significance in patients with CAD.


RESULTS
Sixty-eight consecutive patients with proven CAD were studied. The plasma concentrations of TGF-beta and those of M-CSF were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). They were divided into groups: high (> or =6 ng/ml, n = 19) and low (<6 ng/ml, n = 49) TGF-beta groups and high (>500 ng/ml, n = 52) and low (< or =500 ng/ml, n = 16) M-CSF groups. The long-term prognosis of these patients was prospectively followed up for a mean period of 979 +/- 27 days. The prognosis was analyzed by Kaplan-Meier analysis in terms of total survival, survival without myocardial infarction, survival without cardiovascular events and survival without coronary interventions. The analysis showed that the low TGF-beta group had a significantly poor prognosis in terms of survival without cardiovascular events and survival without coronary interventions as compared with the high TGF-beta group (both P < 0.05), while other prognoses were comparable between the two groups. By contrast, no significant prognostic influence was noted regarding M-CSF.


CONCLUSIONS
These results suggest that plasma concentrations of TGF-beta may have a prognostic significance in patients with CAD.
Division of Cardiology, St Mary's Hospital, Kurume, Japan.
Hideki
H
Tashiro
Hiroaki
H
Shimokawa
Kenji
K
Sadamatu
Kunihiko
K
Yamamoto
D000368:Aged; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood; D003324:Coronary Artery Disease / Q000097:blood* / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000401:mortality; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D016173:Macrophage Colony-Stimulating Factor / Q000097:blood; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011379:Prognosis; D011446:Prospective Studies; D016019:Survival Analysis; D013997:Time Factors; D016212:Transforming Growth Factor beta / Q000097:blood*
D015415:Biomarkers; D016212:Transforming Growth Factor beta; D016173:Macrophage Colony-Stimulating Factor