Pravastatin-induced improvement in coronary reactivity and circulating ATP and ADP levels in young adults with type 1 diabetes.

Aims: Extracellular ATP and ADP regulate diverse inflammatory, prothrombotic and vasoactive responses in the vasculature. Statins have been shown to modulate their signaling pathways in vitro. We hypothesized that altered intravascular nucleotide turnover modulates vasodilation in patients with type 1 diabetes (T1DM), and this can be partly restored with pravastatin therapy.

Higher free fatty acid uptake in visceral than in abdominal subcutaneous fat tissue in men.

Visceral adipose tissue has been shown to have high lipolytic activity. The aim of this study was to examine whether free fatty acid (FFA) uptake into visceral adipose tissue is enhanced compared to abdominal subcutaneous tissue in vivo. Abdominal adipose tissue FFA uptake was measured using positron emission tomography (PET) and [(18)F]-labeled 6-thia-hepta-decanoic acid ([(18)F]FTHA) and fat masses using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in 18 healthy young adult males.

Improvement of myocardial blood flow by lipid-lowering therapy with pravastatin is modulated by apolipoprotein E genotype.

Objective: Apolipoprotein E (apoE) polymorphism affects the risk of advanced coronary artery disease, but its role in early atherosclerosis remains unknown. We used positron emission tomography (PET) to study whether coronary reactivity or its response to pravastatin is related to the apoE genotype.

Material And Methods: Samples from 44 mildly hypercholesterolaemic men (aged 35 +/- 4 years) of an earlier trial were re-analysed according to apoE genotype.

Angiotensin-converting enzyme gene polymorphism and coronary reactivity in young men.

The purpose of the study was to examine whether the insertion/deletion (I/D) polymorphism of the angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) gene affects the vasodilatory properties of coronary arteries in healthy men. The ACE genotypes of 128 men (mean age 35 +/- 4 years) were determined and related to myocardial blood flow. The blood flow was measured by positron emission tomography at rest and during vasodilation caused by adenosine or dipyridamole infusion.

Coronary reactivity, homocysteine and methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase gene variation in young men during pravastatin therapy.

High plasma homocysteine (Hcy) has been linked to impaired endothelial function. We investigated whether treatment with pravastatin affects the Hcy levels. Moreover, we studied whether the methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) C677T polymorphism affects coronary vasomotion at baseline and during the treatment with pravastatin.