Table 2.
Summary of studies on NGAL and cardiovascular disease using human tissue.
| Reference | Population | Specimen | Analysis | Mediator | Major findings |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yndestadt (9) | Endstage HF patients (NYHA class III-IV, LVEF <35%) undergoing cardiac transplantation (n=2) | Heart tissue retrieved immediately on explantation | Immunohistochemistry | Lcn2/NGAL | NGAL immunostaining was strongest in cardiomyocytes within the failing myocardium. |
| Ding (13) | Patients with posthumous diagnosis of myocarditis (n=3) | Heart tissue retrieved on autopsy | Immunohistochemistry, Western blot | Lcn2/NGAL | NGAL was found in cardiomyocytes, vascular wall cells, fibroblastoid cells and leukocytes. |
| Patients with (n=7) and without (n= 19) histological diagnosis of myocarditis | Myocardium retrieved by biopsy | mRNA expression | Lcn2/NGAL | NGAL mRNA levels in human hearts with myocarditis were significantly greater than in those without myocarditis. | |
| Hemdahl (7) | Patients undergoing endarterectomy for symptomatic carotid stenosis (n=4) or coronary artery bypass surgery (n=6) | Carotid artery, internal mammary artery | Immunohistochemistry | NGAL and MMP-9 | MMP-9 and NGAL co-localized with macrophages in the lipid core of atherosclerotic plaques. NGAL was also present in the normal human internal mammary artery, whereas MMP-9 was not detected. |
| te Boekhorst (15) | Patients undergoing carotid endarterectomy (n=122) | Carotid artery | Immunohistochemistry, gel zymography, ELISA | NGAL, MMP, and NGAL/MMP-9 complex | Plaque levels of NGAL tended to be higher when intra-plaque hemorrhage or luminal thrombus was present. Plaque NGAL concentration correlates with plaque activity of MMP-9 and MMP-8, but not MMP-2. NGAL concentrations in local plaque-related blood tended to be higher than in peripheral blood (p=0.06). NGAL/MMP-9 concentrations was significantly higher in local plaque-related blood than peripheral blood (p=0.007). Activity of the NGAL/MMP-9 complex was significantly higher in carotid artery plaques compared with the control mammary arteries.a |
| Folkesson (8) | Patients undergoing elective surgery for infrarenal AAA (n=27) | Abdominal aorta | Western blot, immunohistochemistry, gel zymography, mRNA expression | NGAL, MMP, and NGAL/MMP-9 complex | NGAL is expressed in the intraluminal thrombus and the interface between the thrombus and the underlying AAA wall. Active NGAL/MMP-9 complexes are present in aortic wall segments and in the thrombus. |
a
Source of internal mammary arteries not described in reference (14).