Research On Relationship Between Stability Of Atherosclerotic Plaque And Plasma MMP-9, TGF-β1,TIMP-1Expression In Patients With Cerebral Infarction

Objective:To investigate the relationship between stability of atherosclerotic plaque and plasma MMP-9, TGF-β1, TIMP-1expression in patients with cerebral infarction.Methods:In the present study,84patients, all of whom had cerebral infarction participated in this study and enrolled21healthy controls with no cerebrovascular disease. All the cerebral infarction patients undergone ultrasound in order to detect the characters and quantity of cartiod atherosclerotic plaques. Patients with cerebral infarction were divide into three groups as the standard whether with the existence of carotid atherosclerosis, stable plaque, vulnerable plaque. All the patients clinical parameters were measured. The plasma MMP-9, TGF-(31and TIMP-1expression level of two groups were determined by ELISA. Analysis of variance was adopted to examined differences of MMP9, TGF-(31and TIMP-1, MMP-9/TIMP-1among groups; The logistic regression analysis was used to understand MMP-9, TGF-βi, TIMP-1level change and atherosclerotic plaque stability.Results:1.The differences of age, sex, HDL, TG, CHOL and history of smoking, drinking had no statistically significant(P>0.05); differences of LDL, FBS, IMT and history of diabetes, high blood pressure had statistically significant (P<0.05) between the control group and patients with cerebral infarction;2. Carotid atherosclerosis group had higher concentrations of serum MMP-9, TIMP-1and ratios of MMP-9/TIMP-1than healthy controls and lower concentrations of serum TGF-β1than healthy controls, in addition to the increased MMP-9/TIMP-1ratio difference was statistically significant (P<0.05), the rest of indexs change had no statistical significance (P>0.05); Compared with control group and atherosclerosis group, serum MMP-9, TIMP-1and ratios of MMP-9/TIMP-1had increased in stable plaque group, vulnerable plaque group,but serum TGF-β1had decreased, the differences were statistically significant(P<0.05); vulnerable plaque group had higher concentrations of serum MMP-9, TIMP-1and ratios of MMP-9/TIMP-1than stable plaque group and lower concentrations of serum TGF-P1than stable plaque group, the differences were statistically significant (P<0.05);3. Orderly variable logistic regression showed MMP-9was not an independent risk factor of vulnerable plaques (OR=0.965,95%CI:-2.572-3.815, P>0.05); TGF-β1could lower the risk of carotid plaque vulnerability (OR=0.582,95%CI:0.251-0.862, P<0.05); TIMP1was likely to increase the risk of carotid plaque vulnerability (OR=2.364;95%CI:1.415-2.374, P (0.01).Conclusions:Firstly, Plasma MMP-9, TGF-β1, TIMP-1changes involved in formation of carotid atherosclerotic plaque and maintenance stability of it. Secondly, the imbalance expression of TGF-β1, MMP9/TIMP1may be one of the important mechanisms of carotid atherosclerotic plaque occurrence and progression.Thirdly, TGF-β1is the protection factor of carotid atherosclerotic plaque.