Lipoprotein-associated phospholipase A2, myeloperoxidase and vascular endothelial growth factor - predictors of high vascular risk in respiratory bacterial infections

Objective. Respiratory bacterial infections are associated with important coagulation disturbances that amplify the pulmonary lesions and determine a more severe course of the disease. The aim of our study was to investigate the correlation between the evolution of the general clinical parameters and the occurrence of thrombotic events on one side, and plasma levels of selected proteins involved in inflammation and coagulation on the other side, with the intent to establish and to validate a laboratory test panel for the assessment of the vascular risk in patients with bacterial respiratory infections. Methods. The study included 111 patients (divided into two groups, 61 without thrombosis and 50 with thrombosis) with bacterial respiratory infections and 30 healthy controls, age and gender-matched. The baseline evaluation of the patients included clinical, biological, and respiratory examination. LpPLA2 and MPO activities were measured by the spectrophotometric method. VEGF was quantified with an ELISA kit. Results. The collected data showed a correlation between the occurrence of superimposed thrombosis in respiratory infection patients, and the intensity of the inflammatory process, reflected by the increased MPO activity, and the dynamics of LpPLA2 and VEGF. Conclusion. Bacterial respiratory infections associate thrombotic vascular events of various degrees of severity, which correlate with the intensity of the inflammatory process, and the severity of endothelium dysfunction at the level of microcirculation. Starting from the recorded data, and based on the established severity scales in use, it is possible to compute a vascular risk score that takes into consideration the values of the three biomarkers under investigation. Abbreviations: COPD = chronic obstructive pulmonary disease,hsCRP = high sensitivity C reactive protein,EC = endothelial cells, ICAM-1 = intercellular adhesion molecule1, LpPLA2 = lipoprotein-associated phospholipase A2, MPO = myeloperoxidase,NK cells = natural killer cells,VEGF = vascular endothelial growth factor, VCAM-1 = vascular cell adhesion molecule 1