The Change Of Voltage-gated Potassium Channels In Patients With Acute Coronary Syndrome

Background-Acute coronary syndromes (ACS) are complications of atherosclerotic vascular disease that are triggered by the sudden rupture of an atheroma. Atherosclerotic plaque stability is determined by multiple factors, of which immune and inflammatory pathways are critical. Unstable plaque is characterized by an infiltrate of T cells and macrophages. On activation, T cells secrete cytokines that regulate the activity of macrophages, or the T cells may differentiate into effector cells with tissue damaging potential. Constitutive stimulation of T cells and macrophages in ACS is not limited to the vascular lesion but also involves peripheral immune cells, suggesting fundamental abnormalities in homeostatic mechanisms that control the assembly, turnover, and diversity of the immune system as a whole. Recent study prove that the voltage dependent K+ channel(KV) express in lymphocytes play a critical role in immunomodulation。The Kv channels are essential in resting T cell activation. Kv channels are also important in the regulation of cell volume and lymphcocye adhesion and migration. In autoimmune disease, such as multiple sclerosis(MS), selective targeting of the disease causing lymphocyte with Kv channel blockers prevents and reverses experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis(EAE) in rat model. There have no research about the change of Kv in patients with acute coronary syndrome, and if the Kv can play a targeting effector.Objective-To study the change of the current density of voltage-gated potassium channels and KV1.3 express of lymphocyte in patients with acute coronary syndrome.Methods-Peripheral blood mononuclear cells were collected from 12 patients with ACS and 10 control donors. Whole-cell patch clamp technique was used to record the outward K+ currents (IK) and western blots technique was used to detect the express of KV1.3 protein in lymphocyte.Results- (1)the current density of voltage-gated potassium channel was higher in ACS group than in control group. The current density is (190.63±64) pA/pF in control and (269.27±94) pA/pF in ACS(P<0.01).(2) KV1.3 protein expression significantly increased in ACS(P<0.01). Conclusion- The lymphocyte of ACS patients show more voltage-gated potassium channel, which support the mechanism that immunocompetent, and Kv play an important role in the pathophysiology of acute coronary syndromes (ACS).