J Korean Med Sci.  2019 Apr;34(13):e104. 10.3346/jkms.2019.34.e104.

Comparison of the Plasma Metabolome Profiles Between the Internal Thoracic Artery and Ascending Aorta in Patients Undergoing Coronary Artery Bypass Graft Surgery Using Gas Chromatography Time-of-Flight Mass Spectrometry

• Kim JS
• Kim AH
• Jang C
• Jang IJ
• Kim KB
• Cho JY
• Hwang HY

• KMID: 2442638
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.3346/jkms.2019.34.e104

Abstract

BACKGROUND
The left internal thoracic artery (LITA) has been used as the first conduit of choice in coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) because of excellent long-term patency and outcomes. However, no studies have examined substances other than nitric oxide that could be beneficial for the bypass conduit, native coronary artery or ischemic myocardium. This study was conducted to evaluate differences in metabolic profiles between the LITA and ascending aorta using gas chromatography-time of flight-mass spectrometry (GC-TOF-MS).
METHODS
Twenty patients who underwent CABG using the LITA were prospectively enrolled. Plasma samples were collected simultaneously from the LITA and ascending aorta. GC-TOF-MS based untargeted metabolomic analyses were performed and a 2-step volcano plot analysis was used to identify distinguishable markers from two plasma metabolome profiles. Semi-quantitative and quantitative analyses were performed using GC-TOF-MS and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, respectively, after selecting target metabolites based on the metabolite set enrichment analysis.
RESULTS
Initial volcano plot analysis demonstrated 5 possible markers among 851 peaks detected. The final analysis demonstrated that the L-cysteine peak was significantly higher in the LITA than in the ascending aorta (fold change = 1.86). The concentrations of intermediate metabolites such as L-cysteine, L-methionine and L-cystine in the "˜cysteine and methionine metabolism pathway' were significantly higher in the LITA than in the ascending aorta (2.0-, 1.4- and 1.2-fold, respectively). Quantitative analysis showed that the concentration of hydrogen sulfide (H2S) was significantly higher in the LITA.
CONCLUSION
The plasma metabolome profiles of the LITA and ascending aorta were different, particularly higher plasma concentrations of L-cysteine and H2S in the LITA.

Keyword

Internal Thoracic Artery; Metabolomics; Coronary Artery Bypass; Cysteine; Hydrogen Sulfide

MeSH Terms

Aorta*
Chromatography, Gas*
Coronary Artery Bypass*
Coronary Vessels*
Cysteine
Cystine
Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay
Humans
Hydrogen Sulfide
Mammary Arteries*
Mass Spectrometry*
Metabolism
Metabolome*
Metabolomics
Methionine
Myocardium
Nitric Oxide
Plasma*
Prospective Studies
Spectrum Analysis
Cysteine
Cystine
Hydrogen Sulfide
Methionine
Nitric Oxide