Raaz D, Wallaschofski H, Stumpf C, Yilmaz A, Cicha I, Klinghammer L, Daniel W G, Lohmann T, Garlichs C D
Medical Clinic 2, University Hospital Erlangen, Germany.
Horm Metab Res. 2006 Nov;38(11):767-72. doi: 10.1055/s-2006-955090.
Prolactin and leptin are newly recognized platelet co-stimulators due to enhancement of ADP-induced platelet aggregation. The aim of our study was to assess whether both hormones prolactin and leptin play a role as co-activators of platelet activation in patients with acute coronary syndromes. Twenty-one patients with acute coronary syndromes, 10 with stable angina pectoris and 10 controls were studied. Patients with acute coronary syndromes showed significantly higher prolactin and leptin values and a significant increased P-selectin expression on platelets compared to patients with stable angina pectoris or controls. However, patients with acute myocardial infarction as a subgroup of acute coronary syndromes showed the highest prolactin levels as well as ADP stimulated P-selectin expression. In the myocardial infarction subgroup prolactin values showed a significant correlation to ADP stimulated P-selectin expression on platelets (r (2)=0.41; p=0.025), whereas leptin was not correlated. Our data indicate an association between increased prolactin values and enhanced P-selectin expression on platelets in patients with acute coronary syndromes. Therefore, the stress hormone prolactin could be a co-stimulator of platelet activation in these patients. In contrast, the putative platelet activator leptin does not seem to play a major role in acute coronary syndromes.
