Association between Serum Vitamin D Concentration Status and Matrix Metalloproteinase-9 in ...

Cardiovascular diseases (CVD) have become increasingly life-threatening during recent decades. Several studies have shown that matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9) plays an important role in the process of atherosclerosis and heart remodeling. On the other hand, Vitamin D deficiency has been recognized as a risk factor for CVD. According to the prevalence of vitamin D deficiency in our country, Iran, we aimed to evaluate the relationship between vitamin D status and the level of MMP-9 in patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). In this prospective cross-sectional study, patients who were candidates for elective coronary angioplasty were included. Baseline serum MMP-9 and vitamin D levels were measured before intervention. Patients were categorized into three groups: Vitamin D-severely deficient (≤ 10 ng/ml), vitamin D-moderately deficient (11-20 ng/ml), and vitamin D-insufficient/sufficient (> 21 ng/ml). Totally, 150 patients were assessed. The analysis showed that serum MMP-9 levels were higher in patients with lower vitamin-D concentrations. A significant inverse correlation was found between MMP-9 concentration and 25(OH) vitamin D level (P = 0.039). According to our results, it may be concluded that low levels of vitamin D may lead to more vulnerable atherosclerotic plaques and consequently more cardiovascular adverse effects in post-PCI patients.
Source: Iranian Journal of Pharmaceutical Research - Category: Drugs & Pharmacology Source Type: research