Pentraxin-3 level as a vascular endothelial marker in newly diagnosed and multitransfused patients with Beta-thalassemia major: relation to oxidative stress

Abstract

thalassemia major is an inherited disease resulting from reduction or total lack of beta globin chains. Patients with this disease need repeated blood transfusion for survival. Iron overloading is a prominent feature in hemolytic anemia as β- thalassemia major owing to hemolysis of impaired erythrocytes as well as increased iron intestinal absorption and erythrocyte transfusion. This results in excessive free iron that represents an oxidative stress to the cells especially vascular endothelial cells. Pentraxin-3 increases in response to oxidant stress and can be used as an early diagnostic marker for inflammation. PTX3 is a sensitive and specific biomarker for the diagnosis of cardiovascular diseases. Pentraxin 3 (PTX-3) can be an indicator of vascular endothelial damage occurring with oxidative stress. To test the hypothesis that vascular endothelial dysfunction could occur in newly diagnosed minimally transfused as well as chronic transfusion-dependent young patients with β-thalassemia major, this study assessed the level of pentraxin-3 as a potential early marker for oxidative stress and assess its relation to markers of hemolysis, iron overload, lipid peroxidation as an index of oxidative stress and subclinical atherosclerosis.