Is pentraxin 3 a biomarker, a player, or both in the context of coronary atherosclerosis and metabolic factors?

The objective of this study is to determine whether pentraxin-3 (PTX-3) is clinically a biomarker of inflammation, a player in anti-inflammation, or both with regard to coronary atherosclerosis, we compared levels of PTX-3 with levels of adiponectin in addition to high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP). We enrolled 693 patients (51 % male; mean age 64 ± 12 years) at Fukuoka University Hospital. They were clinically suspected to have coronary artery disease (CAD) or had at least one cardiac risk factor and had undergone coronary computed tomography angiography (CTA). We evaluated the levels of PTX-3, hs-CRP, and adiponectin, the presence of CAD or metabolic factors, subcutaneous fat area, visceral fat area (VFA) and lipid profiles. The presence of CAD was independently associated with aging (p = 0.010) and the prevalence of hypertension (p < 0.0001), but not the levels of PTX-3, hs-CRP and adiponectin by a multivariate analysis. Although the number of significantly stenosed coronary vessels (VD) was not associated with PTX-3 or adiponectin, hs-CRP tended to increase as the number of VD increased. In addition, PTX-3 decreased as the number of metabolic factors increased, whereas hs-CRP increased as the number of metabolic factors increased. Interestingly, PTX-3 did not correlate with hs-CRP, but was positively correlated with adiponectin. In a multiple regression analysis, adiponectin (p = 0.003) and VFA (p = 0.008) were significant predictors of PTX-3 levels. In conclusion, PTX-3 and adiponectin showed similar associations with metabolic factors, whereas PTX-3 and hs-CRP showed opposite trends. Adiponectin and VFA were significant predictors of PTX-3 levels. PTX-3 might have an atheroprotective role as well as serving as a simple biomarker, like adiponectin.