Association of the serum apelin, but not ghrelin, with the presence and severity of coronary artery disease

Increasing evidence suggests that apelin and ghrelin may participate in atherogenesis. We sought to investigate whether the serum levels of apelin and ghrelin are significantly different in patients with coronary artery disease (CAD) compared to patients with nonsignificant coronary stenosis and determine the correlation between these adipokines and the severity of coronary stenosis. The study population included 31 stable CAD patients, 38 unstable CAD patients, and 39 non-CAD subjects. Serum levels of apelin and ghrelin, fasting blood glucose, lipid parameters, hs-CRP and hematological indices were determined in all groups using routine standard laboratory procedures. Serum apelin levels were significantly lower in patient with unstable CAD (0.354 ± 0.063 ng/mL) compared to stable CAD patients (0.401 ± 0.045 ng/mL, p = 0.003) and non-CAD subjects (0.415 ± 0.055 ng/mL, p<0.001). In addition, serum apelin levels were inversely correlated with the severity of coronary stenosis in CAD patients (p<0.05). However, there was no significant difference in ghrelin levels among the 3 groups. This data may suggest that the presence of unstable CAD may be associated with lower serum apelin which may indicate the potential role of this peptide in the progression and destabilization of coronary plaques.