Circulating microparticles generate and transport monomeric C-reactive protein in patients with myocardial infarction

Abstract

AIMS: Elevated serum C-reactive protein (CRP) following myocardial infarction (MI) is associated with poor outcomes. Although animal studies have indicated a direct pathogenic role of CRP, the mechanism underlying this remains elusive. Dissociation of pentameric CRP (pCRP) into pro-inflammatory monomers (mCRP) may directly link CRP to inflammation. We investigated whether cellular microparticles (MPs) can convert pCRP to mCRP and transport mCRP following MI. METHODS AND RESULTS: MPs enriched in lysophosphatidylcholine were obtained from cell cultures and patient whole-blood samples collected following acute MI and control groups. Samples were analysed by native western blotting and flow cyto..