Background: Defective angiogenesis, incomplete thrombus revascularisation and fibrosis are considered critical pathomechanisms of chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension (CTEPH) after pulmonary embolism. Angiopoietin-2 (ANGPT2) has been shown to regulate angiogenesis, but its importance for thrombus resolution and remodelling is unknown.
Methods: ANGPT2 plasma concentrations were measured in patients with CTEPH (n=68) and acute pulmonary embolism (n=84). Tissue removed during pulmonary endarterectomy (PEA) for CTEPH was analysed (immuno)histologically. A mouse model of inferior vena cava ligation was used to study the kinetics of venous thrombus resolution in wild-type mice receiving recombinant ANGPT2 osmotic pumps, and in transgenic mice overexpressing ANGPT2 in endothelial cells.
Results: Circulating ANGPT2 levels were higher in CTEPH patients compared to patients with idiopathic pulmonary arterial hypertension and healthy controls, and decreased after PEA. Plasma ANGPT2 levels were elevated in patients with pulmonary embolism and diagnosis of CTEPH during follow-up. Histological analysis of PEA specimens confirmed increased ANGPT2 expression, and low levels of phosphorylated TIE2 were observed in regions with early-organised pulmonary thrombi, myofibroblasts and fibrosis. Microarray and high-resolution microscopy analysis could localise ANGPT2 overexpression to endothelial cells, and hypoxia and transforming growth factor-β1 were identified as potential stimuli. Gain-of-function experiments in mice demonstrated that exogenous ANGPT2 administration and transgenic endothelial ANGPT2 overexpression resulted in delayed venous thrombus resolution, and thrombi were characterised by lower TIE2 phosphorylation and fewer microvessels.
Conclusion: Our findings suggest that ANGPT2 delays venous thrombus resolution and that overexpression of ANGPT2 contributes to thrombofibrosis and may thus support the transition from pulmonary embolism to CTEPH.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1183/13993003.04196-2020 | DOI Listing |
Int J Surg Case Rep
January 2025
Emergency Medicine Department, Lebanese American University Medical Center, Beirut, Lebanon. Electronic address:
Introduction: Accessory spleens are a common anatomical variant, consisting of ectopic splenic tissue present in different locations in the peritoneal cavity. Typically asymptomatic, the presence of these tissue grows to be of clinical importance when complicated by infarction, rupture, or torsion.
Presentation Of Case: We report the case of a 36-year-old female that presented to the Emergency Department for diffuse abdominal pain and was found to have a partially ruptured splenule secondary to a venous infarct on abdominal computed tomography scan.
Interv Cardiol
November 2024
Cardiology Section, Internal Medicine Department, Arab Medical Center Amman, Jordan.
Coronary artery ectasia (CAE) is an abnormal dilatation of coronary artery segments, often linked with atherosclerosis. This report discusses two cases of CAE presenting as acute coronary syndrome. A 36-year-old man had proximal blockage in the left circumflex artery (LCx) and ectasia in the obtuse marginal artery and left anterior descending artery (LAD), while a 53-year-old male smoker had an ectatic LAD with a substantial thrombus.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAm J Case Rep
January 2025
Department of General Medicine, Juntendo University Faculty of Medicine, Bunkyo, Tokyo, Japan.
BACKGROUND Mondor's disease (MD), or sclerosing superficial thrombophlebitis of the veins of the anterior thoracic wall, is a rare condition of unknown cause that usually involves the superior epigastric vein, producing a visible and palpable Mondor cord. This report describes a 27-year-old Japanese woman presenting with left chest wall pain due to palpable and visible sclerosing superficial thrombophlebitis. CASE REPORT We present the case of a 27-year-old Japanese woman who presented with 8 days of left chest wall and upper abdominal pain.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFActa Cardiol
January 2025
Cardiology, AZ Groeninge, Kortrijk, Belgium.
Objectives: Edge-to-edge mitral valve repair with MitraClip leads to a differed flow pattern and a decreased flow velocity at the left ventricle apex. This combination may lead to initiation of thrombus formation, especially in patients with severely reduced ejection fraction. The prevalence and mechanism of left ventricular thrombus formation after MitraClip implantation is still unknown.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJ Cardiothorac Surg
January 2025
Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, The Fourth Hospital of Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang, Hebei, 050000, P. R. China.
The absence or dysplasia of the iliac artery(IA) is an exceedingly rare condition, with limited cases documented in the literature. In this report, we present a case of hypoplasia of the right external iliac artery (EIA) in a 69-year-old male patient. The patient presented with right lower abdominal pain attributed to an aneurysm of the right internal iliac artery (IIA), yet notably, there was no evidence of lower limb ischemia at the time of consultation.
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