Tan Zhanfei, Guo Fan, Gao Jiaming, Li Lanlan, Xu Shujuan, Zhang Yehao, Fu Jianhua, Liu Jianxun
Wangjing Hospital, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing, China.
Institute of Basic Medical Sciences of Xiyuan Hospital, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing, China.
TH Open. 2025 Aug 7;9:a26616472. doi: 10.1055/a-2661-6472. eCollection 2025.
Although the association between platelet characteristics and the risk of developing atherosclerosis (AS) has been acknowledged, the specific role of platelets in AS development and progression remains unclear. Therefore, the aim of this study was to identify platelet characteristics in patients with and without AS to enhance the understanding of their pathophysiological functions and discover more sensitive biomarkers for AS diagnosis.
We conducted a cross-sectional study involving AS patients and healthy controls (N). Based on the Chinese guidelines for diagnosing carotid and vertebral artery AS and the 2010 American College of Cardiology Foundation/American Heart Association (ACCF/AHA) guidelines, we defined AS using carotid ultrasound to measure intima-media thickness (IMT). General information, including sex, age, height, and weight, was collected upon enrollment. A series of examinations, including physical exams, serum lipid profiles, blood glucose tests, liver and kidney function tests, platelet aggregation assays, and carotid artery ultrasounds, was performed. Platelets were extracted from plasma for RNA-seq analysis.
No statistically significant differences in age, sex, body mass index, or blood pressure were observed between the groups. Total triglyceride, total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, apolipoprotein B, red blood cell count, hemoglobin concentration, cholesterol levels, and carotid IMT were significantly greater, and vascular endothelial function was significantly lower in the AS group than in the N group. Using RNA-seq, we identified 784 differentially expressed genes-141 downregulated and 643 upregulated-with Gene Ontology enrichment showing significant associations with blood coagulation pathways, among others. Weighted correlation network analysis revealed four hub genes related to IMT: , and .
Our findings indicate moderate correlations of elevated ( = 0.327, = 0.004), ( = 0.362, = 0.001), ( = 0.240, = 0.038), and ( = 0.302, = 0.008) levels with increased IMT, suggesting that these genes may serve as predictive biomarkers for AS.
尽管血小板特征与动脉粥样硬化（AS）发生风险之间的关联已得到认可，但血小板在AS发生和发展中的具体作用仍不清楚。因此，本研究的目的是确定AS患者和非AS患者的血小板特征，以增进对其病理生理功能的理解，并发现更敏感的AS诊断生物标志物。
我们进行了一项横断面研究，纳入了AS患者和健康对照（N）。根据中国颈动脉和椎动脉AS诊断指南以及2010年美国心脏病学会基金会/美国心脏协会（ACCF/AHA）指南，我们使用颈动脉超声测量内膜中层厚度（IMT）来定义AS。入组时收集了包括性别、年龄、身高和体重在内的一般信息。进行了一系列检查，包括体格检查、血脂谱、血糖检测、肝肾功能检测、血小板聚集试验和颈动脉超声检查。从血浆中提取血小板进行RNA测序分析。
两组之间在年龄、性别、体重指数或血压方面未观察到统计学上的显著差异。AS组的总甘油三酯、总胆固醇、低密度脂蛋白胆固醇、载脂蛋白B、红细胞计数、血红蛋白浓度、胆固醇水平和颈动脉IMT显著更高，而血管内皮功能显著低于N组。使用RNA测序，我们鉴定出784个差异表达基因——141个下调和643个上调——基因本体富集显示与凝血途径等显著相关。加权相关网络分析揭示了与IMT相关的四个枢纽基因： 、 、 和 。
我们的研究结果表明， （ = 0.327， = 0.004）、 （ = 0.362， = 0.001）、 （ = 0.240， = 0.038）和 （ = 0.302， = 0.008）水平升高与IMT增加呈中度相关，表明这些基因可能作为AS的预测生物标志物。
