Department of Dermatology, University Medical Center and Medical Faculty Mannheim, Ruprecht-Karls University of Heidelberg, Mannheim, Germany.
Immunobiology. 2012 May;217(5):476-82. doi: 10.1016/j.imbio.2012.01.008. Epub 2012 Jan 13.
Inflammation is an important pathogenic factor of cardiovascular diseases. Inflammatory processes induce the organism systemic changes that are sensed by the cells of innate immune system. These systemic changes include increased concentrations of soluble factors capable of activating monocytes in the blood circulation therefore monocytes represent highly attractive cell population for diagnostic use. To date various parameters of circulating monocytes were associated with cardiovascular diseases. These comprise monocyte count, increased adhesive properties, alteration of lipid metabolism, phagocytosis and endocytosis of LDL. Search for markers, better suitable for clinical use led to identification of monocyte population heterogeneity. One of the best studied markers for identification of monocyte subpopulation is CD16. Although there is no consensus regarding the origin and composition of various monocyte subpopulations, association of increased size of CD16+ monocyte population with atherosclerosis is well established. Further surface markers of monocytes found to be associated with cardiovascular diseases are CD18, CD11b, CXCR1, CD36 and STAB1. Functional studies performed on primary human monocytes support the importance of these molecules for the pathogenesis of cardiovascular diseases. Continuous research on monocyte biology leads to identification of perspective markers that show significant potential of clinical use. These include analysis of monocyte response to a challenge and level of mitochondrial DNA heteroplasmy. Further research involving genomic, proteomic and cell biology techniques supplemented with systems biology approaches for data analysis and computer simulations are required for defining molecular and functional parameters of monocytes to be used as a diagnostic tool or therapeutic target.
炎症是心血管疾病的重要致病因素。炎症过程会引起机体的全身性变化，而这些变化会被先天免疫系统的细胞感知。这些全身性变化包括可激活循环中单核细胞的可溶性因子浓度增加，因此单核细胞是极具吸引力的诊断用途细胞群体。迄今为止，各种循环单核细胞参数与心血管疾病相关。这些参数包括单核细胞计数、增加的黏附特性、脂质代谢改变、LDL 的吞噬和内吞作用。为了寻找更适合临床应用的标志物，人们对单核细胞群体异质性进行了研究。鉴定单核细胞亚群的最佳研究标志物之一是 CD16。尽管对于各种单核细胞亚群的起源和组成尚未达成共识，但 CD16+单核细胞群体增大与动脉粥样硬化的相关性已得到充分证实。进一步发现与心血管疾病相关的单核细胞表面标志物包括 CD18、CD11b、CXCR1、CD36 和 STAB1。对原代人单核细胞进行的功能研究支持这些分子在心血管疾病发病机制中的重要性。对单核细胞生物学的持续研究导致了有前景的标志物的鉴定，这些标志物显示出了显著的临床应用潜力。这些标志物包括分析单核细胞对刺激的反应和线粒体 DNA 异质性水平。进一步涉及基因组、蛋白质组和细胞生物学技术的研究，结合数据分析和计算机模拟的系统生物学方法，将有助于确定单核细胞的分子和功能参数，以作为诊断工具或治疗靶点。
