Ceramides and metabolic profiles of patients with acute coronary disease: a cross-sectional study

Liang Zhang; Dawei Tan; Yang Zhang; Yaodong Ding; Huiqing Liang; Gong Zhang; Zhijiang Xie; Nian Sun; Chunjing Wang; Bingxin Xiao; Hanzhong Zhang; Lin Li; Xiufeng Zhao; Yong Zeng

doi:10.3389/fphys.2023.1177765

Ceramides and metabolic profiles of patients with acute coronary disease: a cross-sectional study

Front Physiol. 2023 Dec 11:14:1177765. doi: 10.3389/fphys.2023.1177765. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Liang Zhang^#^{1

2}, Dawei Tan^#³, Yang Zhang¹, Yaodong Ding¹, Huiqing Liang⁴, Gong Zhang⁵, Zhijiang Xie⁶, Nian Sun⁷, Chunjing Wang⁷, Bingxin Xiao⁷, Hanzhong Zhang⁸, Lin Li⁷, Xiufeng Zhao⁶, Yong Zeng¹

Affiliations

¹ Department of Cardiology, Beijing Anzhen Hospital, Beijing Institute of Heart, Lung and Blood Vessel Diseases, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China.
² Heart Center, Beijing Chest Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China.
³ Department of Invasive Technology, Emergency General Hospital, Beijing, China.
⁴ Department of Cardiology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Hebei North University, Zhangjiakou, China.
⁵ Department of Cardiology, Beijing Daxing District People's Hospital, Beijing, China.
⁶ Department of Cardiology, Handan First Hospital, Handan, China.
⁷ Beijing Health Biotechnology Co., Ltd., Beijing, China.
⁸ Beijing 21st Century International School, Beijing, China.

^# Contributed equally.

Abstract

Metabolic Syndrome (MS) is a rapidly growing medical problem worldwide and is characterized by a cluster of age-related metabolic risk factors. The presence of MS increases the likelihood of developing atherosclerosis and significantly raises the morbidity/mortality rate of acute coronary syndrome (ACS) patients. Early detection of MS is crucial, and biomarkers, particularly blood-based, play a vital role in this process. This cross-sectional study focused on the investigation of certain plasma ceramides (Cer14:0, Cer16:0, Cer18:0, Cer20:0, Cer22:0, and Cer24:1) as potential blood biomarkers for MS due to their previously documented dysregulated function in MS patients. A total of 695 ACS patients were enrolled, with 286 diagnosed with MS (ACS-MS) and 409 without MS (ACS-nonMS) serving as the control group. Plasma ceramide concentrations were measured by LC-MS/MS assay and analyzed through various statistical methods. The results revealed that Cer18:0, Cer20:0, Cer22:0, and Cer24:1 were significantly correlated with the presence of MS risk factors. Upon further examination, Cer18:0 emerged as a promising biomarker for early MS detection and risk stratification, as its plasma concentration showed a significant sensitivity to minor changes in MS risk status in participants. This cross-sectional observational study was a secondary analysis of a multicenter prospective observational cohort study (Chinese Clinical Trial Registry, https://www.who.int/clinical-trials-registry-platform/network/primary-registries/chinese-clinical-trial-registry-(chictr), ChiCTR-2200056697), conducted from April 2021 to August 2022.

Keywords: LC-MS/MS; acute coronary syndrome; biomarker; ceramide; metabolic syndrome; stratification treatment.

Grants and funding

This study was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 82070301) and the Beijing Municipal Science and Technology Project (Grant No. Z211100003521022).