The cytokines within the carotid plaque in symptomatic patients with internal carotid artery stenosis

The aim of the study was the evaluation of the inflammatory cytokines within atheromatic carotid plaque. Materials and methods: The experiment was carried out on 100 symptomatic patients with internal carotid artery stenosis that underwent carotid endarterectomy. Every patient had the wall of the carotid artery resected during organ harvesting surgery in order to evaluate some cytokines (TGF-beta, VEGF, FGF, TNF-alpha) and to perform the immunohistochemistry (IHC). An immunoreactive score (IRS) was calculated based on the staining intensity and the number of cells stained. Over a 3-year period, 7 patients died, and 2 patients were lost to follow-up. The study group consisted of 91 patients. The control group comprised 20 young organ donors with confirmed death brain, who had their normal carotid artery sampled. Results: In all healthy donors (control group) with normal carotid arteries the three cytokines (TGF-beta, VEGF, TNF-alpha) were not discovered. The presence of FGF was confirmed in 25% of healthy donors, probably due to an intima fibroblasts activity, responsible for the synthesis of elastin and collagen to the extracellular matrix (ECM). Only three cytokines (TGF-beta, FGF, TNF-alpha) were found within atheromatous plaques (study group). Conclusions: Our research confirmed that these factors may accelerate the development of atheromatic plaque and its destabilisation.