Rheumatic Heart Disease In Patients With Atrial Fibrillation Atrium Of Crp, Il-6, Tnf-alpha Expression And Fibrosis Research

Objective To investigate whether atrial expression of C reactive protein(CRP),interleukin-6 (IL-6),tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) and atrial fibrosis of right atrial appendages are altered in patients with rheumatic valvular disease during chronic atrial fibrillation1.Methods A total of 40 patients with rheumatic heart disease (RHD) were included 20 patients had no history of atrial fibrillation, 20 patients had atrial fibrillation. Atrial tissue were obtained from the right atrial appendage during open heart surgery. The inflammatory infiltration and fibrosis of right atrial appendage were detected by HE and Masson staining. The protein expression of CRP, IL-6 and TNF-αwere detected by Western-blotting method. Total RNA were extracted with Trizol from the atrial tissues and mRNA were transcribed reversely into cDNA. The real- time quantitative RT-PCR was used to detect the expression of mRNA. Left atrial diameter (LAD) and ejection fraction (EF) of each group were measured by echocardiography respectively.Results The inflammatory infiltration and fibrosis of right atrial appendage were significantly increased in patients with chronic atrial fibrillation. The mRNA of CRP,IL-6 and TNF-αor the protein of CRP, IL-6 and TNF-αwere significantly increased in patients with chronic atrial fibrillation(CAF) compared with sinus rhythm group(SR) (p <0.05).Conclusions The protein expression of CRP,IL-6 and TNF-αwere significantly increased in patients with rheumatic valvular disease during chronic atrial fibrillation. Inflammation may be one of the mechanisms for the development and persistence of atrial fibrillation1.