title: Homocysteine is related to aortic mineralization in patients with ischemic heart disease.
abstract: Homocysteine is implicated as an early atherosclerotic promoter, which enhances the smooth muscle cell proliferation and produces free radicals that induce cellular damage. These factors must have a role in the progression of atherosclerosis that subsequently leads to vascular mineralization.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  Identify a correlation between the plasma concentration of total homocysteine and the amount of minerals that accumulate in the aorta of patients with atherosclerosis.
  
  
  METHODS
  We performed a cross-sectional study in 13 patients with three-vessel coronary artery disease, undergoing coronary artery bypass surgery. Aortic and mammary artery specimens were analyzed using a scanning electron microscope with an energy dispersive X-ray spectrometer. The homocysteine was determined using an immunonephelometry method.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The amount of minerals in the aorta was greater (300 ± 181.6 particles per 500 µm2 than that in the mammary artery (64 ± 45 particles per 500 µm2 (p < 0.01). The average tHcy was 9.5 ± 2.3 µmol/L. The Spearman's rank correlation coefficient was positive between tHcy, and aortic iron (p < 0.05).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our study demonstrates that the aorta is dramatically affected by mineralization compared to the mammary artery. In addition, a direct correlation was identified between the levels of tHcy and the iron particles in the aortic wall.
authors.affiliation: Instituto Nacional de Cardiología Ignacio Chávez, Grupo Genética Intervencionista, Departamentos de Biología Molecular, Hemodinámica, Endocrinología, Cirugía, Mexico.
authors.forename: Marco A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Peña-Duque
authors.forename: Manuel A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Baños-González
authors.forename: Benjamín
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Valente-Acosta
authors.forename: Luis Gerardo
authors.initials: LG
authors.lastname: Rodríguez-Lobato
authors.forename: Marco A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Martínez-Ríos
authors.forename: Guillermo
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Cardoso-Saldaña
authors.forename: Rodolfo
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Barragán-García
authors.forename: Valentín
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Herrera-Alarcón
authors.forename: Carlos
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Linares-López
authors.forename: Hugo
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Delgado-Granados
authors.forename: Aurora
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: de la Peña-Díaz
mesh_terms: D002114:Calcinosis / Q000209:etiology* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D003324:Coronary Artery Disease / Q000150:complications* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006349:Heart Valve Diseases / Q000209:etiology* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D006710:Homocysteine / Q000378:metabolism*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008323:Mammary Arteries / Q000473:pathology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D017202:Myocardial Ischemia / Q000150:complications* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D011379:Prognosis
chemical_list: D006710:Homocysteine