Aspirin and clopidogrel resistance: Possible mechanisms and clinical relevance. Part I: Concept of resistance

Aspirin and clopidogrel are well established as antiplatelet medication in the treatment of atherothrombotic vascular disease. However, despite treatment, a substantial number of patients experience recurrent ischemic episodes, referred to as aspirin or clopidogrel treatment failure. Various laboratory techniques are available with which to evaluate the effectiveness of antiplatelet drugs. Interestingly, the agreement between the results of the different tests may be poor. The term aspirin or clopidogrel resistance denotes those conditions in which an inadequate inhibitory efficacy of the given antiplatelet agent is detected by an in vitro assay of platelet function. It has been estimated that on average some 30% of patients treated with aspirin, and 20% on clopidogrel, do not achieve an appropriate level of efficacy as concerns platelet activity

Aspirin and clopidogrel resistance: Possible mechanisms and clinical relevance. Part II: Potential causes and laboratory tests

Recent meta-analyses have indicated that patients with vascular disease demonstrated by laboratory tests to be aspirin or clopidogrel-resistant are at an increased risk of major vascular events. The suggested mechanisms of aspirin resistance include genetic polymorphism, alternative pathways of platelet activation, aspirin-insensitive thromboxane biosynthesis, drug interactions, or a low aspirin dose. Clopidogrel resistance is likely to develop as a result of a decreased bioavailability of the active metabolite, due to genetic variation or concomitant drug treatment. Additional work is required to improve and validate laboratory tests of platelet function, so that they may become useful tools for selection of the most appropriate antiplatelet therapy for an individual patient. Improvements in antiplatelet treatment strategies in the future should lead to a reduction in premature vascular events

Effects of citalopram and fluoxetine on the corticocerebral blood flow in conscious rabbits

Depression, which is associated with an increased incidence of vascular events, frequently occurs following stroke. Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitory drugs (SSRIs) as antidepressants, are well tolerated, and also seem to be effective in post-stroke depression. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of the SSRIs citalopram and fluoxetine, on the corticocerebral blood flow (cCBF) in rabbits with unilateral carotid occlusion induced cerebral ischemia. The cCBF was measured by the hydrogen clearance technique. After determination of the mean baseline cCBF, the effects of individual doses (0.1, 0.3 and 1 mg/kg) of citalopram or fluoxetine on the cCBF were investigated. Following the induction of an impaired cCBF, the changes in cCBF after drug treatments in this condition were likewise measured. The mean arterial blood pressure (MABP) and the heart rate (HR) from the electrocardiogram (ECG) were also determined. Neither citalopram nor fluoxetine influenced the cCBF in the control group. Fluoxetine improved the cCBF only very slightly in the ischemic animals. In contrast, all the doses of citalopram exerted pronounced and dose-dependent cCBF-increasing effects in the animals with unilateral carotid occlusion (maximal mean ACBF: 10, 16 and 27 ml/min/100 g tissue). The HR was decreased in both groups. Only citalopram treatment led to a slight MABP-decreasing effect. Besides enhancement of the serotonergic transmission in the brain, the cCBF-increasing effect of citalopram under ischemic conditions may be of benefit in post-stroke and vascular depression

Genetic polymorphisms of human beta-defensins in patients with ischemic stroke

Tiszlavicz Z, Somogyvari F, Szolnoki Z, Sztriha LK, Nemeth B, Vecsei L, Mandi Y. Genetic polymorphisms of human beta-defensins in patients with ischemic stroke. ?Acta Neurol Scand: 2012: 126: 109115. (C)2011 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Objectives and Methods Genetic predisposition of the inflammatory host response may affect the development of stroke. On the basis of the theory of infectious burden and risk of stroke, we considered it of interest to investigate the relevance of the single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the DEFB1 gene and the copy number variant (CNV) of the DEFB4 genes in ischemic stroke. Results There were no significant differences in the genotype frequencies of the three SNPs of the DEFB1 gene between the patients with stroke (n = 312) and the healthy blood donors (n = 221). However, a higher frequency of a lower (<4) copy number of the DEFB4 gene was observed in the patients with ischemic stroke as compared with the healthy controls (40% vs 24%, respectively). Additionally, low plasma concentrations of hBD-2 (187 +/- 20 pg/ml) were characteristic of the patients with fewer than four copy numbers relative to those with more than four copy numbers (385 +/- 35 pg/ml). Conclusions The low copy number of the DEFB4 gene, involving a weakened antimicrobial defense of the host, might be important in the pathogenesis of stroke

Relevance of the genetic polymorphism of NOD1 in Chlamydia pneumoniae seropositive stroke patients

Background and purpose: Chronic infections with certain pathogens, such as Chlamydia pneumoniae, and genetic parameters that influence inflammatory reactions have been suggested to contribute to ischaemic stroke. NOD1 is a potent cytosolic receptor for C. pneumoniae. The aim of this study was to investigate the genetic polymorphism of NOD1 from the aspect of the development of stroke. Materials and methods: A total of 280 patients with ischaemic stroke were enrolled in the study; 150 healthy blood donors served as controls. The G796A (E266K) NOD1 polymorphism was determined by restriction fragment length polymorphism. Chlamydia pneumoniae seropositivity was tested by ELISA. Results: There was a significant difference in NOD1 G796A genotype distribution between the controls and the stroke patients with C. pneumoniae seropositivity. The AA homozygote and GA heterozygote mutant variants were detected in 16% (25 of 152) and in 50% (77 of 152) of the C. pneumoniae-positive stroke patients, as compared with 8% (6 of 84), and 28% (24 of 84), respectively, in the C. pneumoniae-positive healthy controls. (OR = 2.559; 95% CI = 1.105-6.517, P = 0.04 and OR = 2.567; 95% CI = 1.451-4.540 P < 0.001, respectively). The stroke patients with the large vessel pathology exhibited the highest frequency of the mutant allele A (51%). In contrast, amongst the C. pneumoniae-negative subjects, no difference in genotype frequency was observed between the stroke patients and the controls. Conclusion: Polymorphism in NOD1 G796A alone did not prove to be a risk factor for stroke in general, but in association with C. pneumoniae infection it appeared to be accompanied by an increased risk of the development of stroke

Optical platelet aggregometry does not appear useful as a means of assessing the risk of recurrent vascular events in aspirin-treated patients

Objective- To investigate whether the results of optical platelet aggregometry indicate the risk of recurrent ischemic events. Materials and methods- Cerebro- and cardiovascular patients taking aspirin for at least 30 days were studied retrospectively. Ischemic vascular events occurring prior to testing and the presence of vascular risk factors were recorded. Results- 241 subjects were included. Among the 78 patients (32.4%) who displayed recurrent vascular episodes, the age (62.5 +/- 10.6 vs. 58.4 +/- 11.6, P = 0.009) and the proportion of hypertensives (80.8% vs. 68.1%, P = 0.040) were significantly higher when compared with the participants who exhibited single events. The degree of platelet aggregation did not differ significantly between the patients with and those without recurrent episodes. Logistic regression analysis identified only age (OR 1.033, 95% CI 1.008-1.058, P = 0.010), and not aggregation values, as a risk condition for recurrent vascular episodes. Conclusions- Results of optical platelet aggregometry were not indicative of the risk of recurrent vascular events. The role of conventional risk factors appeared to be more important