title: Does the aminopeptidase A have prognostic and diagnostic value in Chagas disease and other dilated cardiomyopathies?
abstract: Chagas disease (CD), which is caused by the protozoan Trypanosoma cruzi, is a major cause of heart failure in Latin America. We investigated if plasma activity of one of the enzymes being part of the renin-angiotensin system, aminopeptidase A (APA), has diagnostic and prognostic potency in patients with CD and dilated cardiomyopathies (DCMs) due to other causes. Blood samples were taken from 94 patients with CD, 46 patients with DCM, and 34 healthy control subjects. Plasma APA activity was determined by fluorometry assays. The average follow-up time was 39 months; by the end of study, 33 patients had died and another 13 received heart transplant. There was no significant alteration in plasma APA activity in the patients with CD or DCM, as compared with that in controls. The Pearson correlation of echocardiographic data with plasma APA activity in patients with CD and DCM did not reveal any significant correlation with left-ventricular ejection fraction or other echocardiographic parameters. APA activity was unable to predict mortality or the need for heart transplant. Detection of APA activity in plasma may not prove suitable for prognosis in patients with heart failure and is unable to screen or diagnose asymptomatic patients with CD for early therapy.
authors.affiliation: Centre for Cardiovascular and Metabolic Research, Hull York Medical School, University of Hull, Hull, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Yong
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Maria da Consolação V
authors.initials: Mda C
authors.lastname: Moreira
authors.forename: Silvia
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Heringer-Walther
authors.forename: Adnan
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Khan
authors.forename: Heinz-Peter
authors.initials: HP
authors.lastname: Schultheiss
authors.forename: Niels
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Wessel
authors.forename: Wolf-Eberhard
authors.initials: WE
authors.lastname: Siems
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Walther
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002311:Cardiomyopathy, Dilated / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000503:physiopathology*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D014355:Chagas Disease / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000503:physiopathology*; D015331:Cohort Studies; D004452:Echocardiography; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D043384:Glutamyl Aminopeptidase / Q000097:blood*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011379:Prognosis; D011446:Prospective Studies; D016277:Ventricular Function, Left
chemical_list: D043384:Glutamyl Aminopeptidase