Low Levels of Plasma Osteoglycin in Patients with Complex Coronary Lesions

Aim: Osteoglycin is one of proteoglycans that are biologically active components of vascular extracellular matrix. However, the role of osteoglycin in atherosclerosis remains unclear. Methods: We investigated plasma osteoglycin levels and the presence, severity, and lesion morphology of coronary artery disease (CAD) in 462 patients undergoing elective coronary angiography. Results: Of 462 patients, 245 had CAD. Osteoglycin levels were higher in patients with CAD than without CAD (median 29.7 vs. 25.0 ng/mL, P < 0.05). However, osteoglycin levels did not differ among patients with one-vessel, two-vessel, or three-vessel disease (30.8, 30.6, and 29.4 ng/mL, respectively) and did not correlate with the number of stenotic segments. Among 245 CAD patients, 41 had complex coronary lesions, and 70 had total occlusion, of whom 67 had good collateralization. Between 70 patients with occlusion and 175 without occlusion, osteoglycin levels did not differ (30.4 vs. 29.5 ng/mL). Notably, osteoglycin levels were lower in 41 patients with complex lesions than in 204 without such lesions (24.2 vs. 31.6 ng/mL, P < 0.02). In multivariate analysis, osteoglycin levels were an independent factor for complex lesion but not for CAD. Odds ratio for complex lesion was 0.80 (95%CI = 0.67–0.96) for each 10 ng/mL increase in osteoglycin levels (P < 0.02). Conclusion: Although plasma osteoglycin levels were high in patients with CAD, they did not correlate with the severity of CAD and were not an independent factor for CAD. Notably, osteoglycin levels were low in patients with complex lesions and were a factor for complex lesions, suggesting that osteoglycin plays a role in coronary plaque stabilization.