Serum Calcium is Related to the Degree of Artery Stenosis in Acute Ischemic Stroke.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Acute ischemic stroke is caused by stenosis of artery supplying to brain. We aimed to detect some metabolites in the serum that would be related to the degree of artery stenosis and to analyze potential mechanisms.

METHODS

Patients diagnosed with acute ischemic stroke were divided into two groups according to their degree of artery stenosis (which was determined by computed tomographic angiography): a mild group (stenosis ≤ 30%) and a severe group (stenosis > 30%). Serum from these patients was collected, and we focused on the differences in the concentrations of calcium, uric acid, low density lipoprotein and homocysteine. The dataset GSE11583 from the Gene Expression Omnibus database was analyzed to find the potential mechanism using bioinformatics methods.

RESULTS

Among the four metabolites, the only difference that reached significance between the two groups was in the concentration of calcium in serum (2.27±0.08 mmol/L vs 2.21±0.08 mmol/L). By comparing the gene expression levels between normal endothelial cells and adaptive remodeling endothelial cells in GSE11583, we identified 51 upregulated and 40 downregulated genes in adaptive remodeling endothelial cells. The gene set enrichment analysis revealed that upregulated genes were enriched in a phosphatidylinositol signaling system, which is closely involved in the calcium signaling pathway.

CONCLUSION

Our results suggest that the concentration of serum calcium is higher in patients with more severe artery stenosis lesions and that the phosphatidylinositol signaling system is a key biological pathway involved in this process.