Clinical and diagnostic significance of apoptosis markers in myocardial infarction in the setting of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

Objective : To study the levels of heat shock protein 70 (HSP70) and annexin V-dependent apoptosis of cells in myocardial infarction (MI) with a different course of the disease and in the setting of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Materials and Methods : Sixty-five patients with MI were examined; 37 of them developed MI in the setting of COPD, and 28 patient had MI without COPD. The subjects were divided into subgroups depending on the presence of ST segment elevation. The control group included 30 somatically healthy individuals. Results : In all examined patients with MI and in patients with MI with COPD, the number of annexin V-associated apoptotic cells and the level of HSP70 was statistically significantly higher than in healthy individuals. The value of the studied biomarkers was statistically significantly higher than in patients without COPD. In patients with MI with ST segment elevation, the values of the studied biomarkers were statistically significantly higher in patients without ST segment elevation in all the examined patients. Conclusions : Higher values of the studied biomarkers in the group of comorbid patients compared with those with MI without COPD may be associated with intensified apoptosis in the setting of chronic systemic inflammation, which worsens the clinical course of both diseases. The greater significance of the levels of HSP70 and annexin V-dependent cell apoptosis in patients with MI with ST segment elevation compared with patients without ST segment elevation is due to the volume of myocardial lesion.