Circulating C1q/TNF-related protein-12 levels are associated with the severity of coronary artery disease

Coronary artery disease (CAD) is the world's largest cause of death. The association of CAD with inflammation is well established. Recently, it has been confirmed that the C1q/TNF-related protein 12 (CTRP12) has a great anti-inflammatory effect. However, few data are available regarding the serum CTRP12 concentration levels in CAD patients. The study was performed to evaluate the correlation between the serum levels of CTRP12 and the CAD severity regarding to the number of affected vessels. About 200 suspected CAD patients and 50 healthy ones as a control, were evaluated based on case-control study. According to the results of angiography, patients were divided into CAD+ (n = 150) with any major coronary artery stenosis ≥50% and CAD− (n = 50) with