diaDexus Study Shows Lp-PLA2 to Be an Independent Risk Marker for Coronary Artery Disease
Tuesday August 31, 2:00 pm ET
Professor Wolfgang Koenig, MD Presents Abstract at 2004 European Society of Cardiology
ESC Abstract #P2482
SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. and MUNICH, August 31 /PRNewswire/ -- New data presented today at the 2004 European Society of Cardiology (ESC) Congress in Munich demonstrate that elevated levels of lipoprotein-associated phospholipase A2 (Lp-PLA2) are independently associated with the presence of stable coronary artery disease (CAD). The study, conducted by Professor Wolfgang Koenig, MD, Department of Internal Medicine II-Cardiology, University of Ulm Medical Center, Ulm, Germany, is based on a case-control study, involving 312 patients with CAD and 479 age- and gender-matched blood donors.
The PLAC(TM) test, developed by diaDexus, was used to measure Lp-PLA2 levels in the nearly 800 men and women. Lp-PLA2 levels were significantly higher in cases compared to controls. Those with the highest levels of Lp-PLA2 were approximately twice as likely to have CAD as those with the lowest levels.
"The results from this study demonstrate that elevated levels of Lp-PLA2 are significantly correlated with the presence of CAD," said Professor Koenig. "This supports our belief that Lp-PLA2 is an important independent risk marker for CAD."
These study results are similar to analyses of the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) and West of Scotland Coronary Prevention Study (WOSCOPS) populations. The results from the ARIC study, published in the February 2004 issue of Circulation, and the WOSCOPS study, published in October 2000 in the New England Journal of Medicine, both showed a statistically significant relationship between elevated Lp-PLA2 and the risk of a cardiac event when measured alone or with other risk factors. Among individuals in ARIC who had normal LDL levels (<130 mg/dL), those with elevated Lp-PLA2 levels were shown to be at twice the risk for a coronary event compared to those with the lowest levels.
An additional study from the ARIC cohort found that Lp-PLA2 levels were highly correlated with the occurrence of stroke (presented at the May 2004 Atherosclerosis, Thrombosis and Vascular Biology conference).
In addition to Professor Koenig's presentation, the results of the Rotterdam Study were presented at the ESC meeting and further validate the growing body of evidence demonstrating a critical link between Lp-PLA2 and both CAD and stroke.
This study was supported by a grant from diaDexus, Inc.
About diaDexus
diaDexus, Inc., a privately held biotechnology company, based in South San Francisco, California, is focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of novel, patent-protected diagnostic and therapeutic products with high clinical value. The PLAC test, developed by diaDexus, Inc., is a blood test cleared by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to aid in the prediction of an individual's risk for a coronary event, in conjunction with clinical evaluation and patient risk assessment. Lp-PLA2 testing is currently available through laboratories nationwide. For more information about the PLAC test visit www.plactest.com. More information about the company may be found at www.diaDexus.com. |
