title: Behaviour of the plasma concentration of gelatinases and their tissue inhibitors in subjects with venous leg ulcers.
abstract: Venous leg ulcers are common in subjects with chronic venous insufficiency. The increased intraluminal pressure causes alteration of the skin microcirculation, leukocyte activation and release of proteolytic enzymes leading to ulceration. An impaired expression and activity of matrix metalloproteases (MMPs) and their tissue inhibitors (TIMPs) might influence extracellular matrix degradation and deposition in chronic venous ulcers with the failure of the healing process. Our aim was to evaluate plasma concentration of gelatinases (MMP-2 and MMP-9) and their inhibitors (TIMP-1 and TIMP-2) in subjects with venous leg ulcers before and after the compression therapy. We enrolled 36 subjects (12 men and 24 women, mean age 67.38 ± 12.7 yrs) with non-infected venous leg ulcers (CEAP C6), which underwent a color Duplex scan examination of the veins and arteries of the inferior limbs and were treated with a multi-layer bandaging system. The ulcer healing was obtained in 23 subjects only (9 men and 14 women). We evaluated, on fasting venous blood, the plasma levels of MMP-2, MMP-9, TIMP-1 and TIMP-2 using ELISA kit, before and after the treatment. We observed a significant increase in plasma concentration of gelatinases and their inhibitors and in MMP-2/TIMP-2 ratio in subjects with leg ulcers in comparison with normal controls. In subjects with healed ulcers we found a decrease in MMP-9 and TIMP-1 levels and in MMP-2/TIMP-2 ratio compared to the baseline values, although higher levels of all the examined parameters in comparison with normal controls. In conclusion, plasma MMPs profile is impaired in subjects with venous leg ulcers and it improves after the healing, persisting anyway altered in respect to healthy controls.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Caimi
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Ferrara
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Montana
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Muratori
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Amato
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Canino
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Lo Presti
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Hopps
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D005260:Female; D018093:Gelatinases / Q000097:blood*; D006801:Humans; D007871:Leg Ulcer / Q000097:blood*; D008297:Male; D020778:Matrix Metalloproteinase 2 / Q000378:metabolism; D020782:Matrix Metalloproteinases; D019715:Tissue Inhibitor of Metalloproteinase-1 / Q000378:metabolism; D019716:Tissue Inhibitor of Metalloproteinase-2 / Q000378:metabolism; D014647:Varicose Ulcer / Q000175:diagnosis*; D014689:Venous Insufficiency
chemical_list: C560822:TIMP1 protein, human; C560823:TIMP2 protein, human; D019715:Tissue Inhibitor of Metalloproteinase-1; D019716:Tissue Inhibitor of Metalloproteinase-2; D018093:Gelatinases; D020782:Matrix Metalloproteinases; D020778:Matrix Metalloproteinase 2
keywords: MMP-2; MMP-9; TIMP-1; TIMP-2; Venous leg ulcers