Expression of the Macrophage Scavenger Receptor in Atherosclerotic Patients

Abstract

Atherosclerosis is a major health problem allover the world. It is considered as a major determinant in cerebrovascular stroke, peripheral vascular insufficiency, congestive heart failure, cardiac arrhythmias and sudden death due to heart attack. Atherosclerosis is characterized by intimal accumulation of lipids (mainly cholesterol and cholesterol esters). The macrophage scavenger receptor (MSR) plays a major role in the internali zation of chemically modified lipoproteins by macrophages, lead ing to the transformation of macrophages into lipid laden foam cells. Thus, analysis of LDL-receptor (MSR) might contribute to understanding the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis.

The aim of the present study was to evaluate ifMSR was a better predictor for CAD than conventional markers including total cholesterol, triglyceride, LDL-c, HDL-c and atherogenic risk factor (TC/HDL-c). Moreover, the reliability ofMSR assay in determining the severity of the disease and its progression was investigated.

This study included 48 subjects, 20 of them were healthy volunteers and were considered as healthy control group (group I). All subjects included in group I were normotensive, non­ diabetic and non-smokers. The other 28 subjects were suffering from anginal pain and were subjected to coronary angiography. The coronary angiography of 12 subjects revealed normal coronary arteries and these were considered as the pathological