The pattern of circulating microparticles in patients with diabetes mellitus with asymptomatic atherosclerosis

Background: Accelerating atherosclerosis in type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) patients may relate to imbalance between pattern of microparticles (MPs), which are frequently involved in repair of vasculature, tissue injury, inflammation and thrombosis. The aim of the study was to investigate the pattern of circulating MPs in T2DM patients with asymptomatic atherosclerosis.Methods: A total of 103 patients with T2DM (54 subjects without documented coronary atherosclerosis and 49 patients with angiographic evidence of asymptomatic coronary atherosclerosis) who were underwent a contrast-enhanced multispiral computed tomography angiography and 35 healthy volunteers were enrolled in the study. To determine circulating biomarkers, blood samples were collected at baseline. MPs were labelled and characterized by flow cytometry.Results: There were no significant differences between healthy volunteers and T2DM patients in circulating numbers of MPs labelled as CD41a+, CD64+, CD144+, CD144+/CD31+, Annexin V+, CD144+/ann...