Endothelial injury in Patients with Aortoarteritis

Objective To investigate the relationship between plasma endothelin-1 (ET-1), circulating endothelialcells (CECs) in patients with aortoarteritis in related to the phases of disease. Methods Fifty-six patients with aortoarteritis were recruited including 31 in active phase and 25 in inactive phase. The plasma levels of ET-1 were measured by radioimmunoassay. Endothelial cell counts(CECs) were also carried out as a marker of a vessel wall impairment. Results The plasma levels of ET-1 and CECs in active phase were significantly higher than in inactive phase [ET-1:(136.9±12.2 vs 49.4±2.7) pmol/L;CECs (58.0±4.0 vs 17.0±2.0)cells/μL, respectively, P0.001]. A significant positive correlation was found between plasma ET-1 levels and erythrocyte sedimentation rates (ESRs) (r0.65, P0.001), as well as between CECs and ESR(r0.88, P0.001). Conclusion These results suggested that the ET-1 was released during the active stages of aortoarteritis, which leads to constriction and proliferation of vascular smooth muscle cells, and entai on progressive luminal narrowing of the vessels. The CECs may be one of the marker to evaluate the activity of this disease.