EVIDENCE FOR MORE EXTENSIVE DEPOSITS OF EPITOPES OF OXIDIZED LOW-DENSITY-LIPOPROTEIN IN AORTAS OF YOUNG-PEOPLE WITH ELEVATED SERUM THIOCYANATE LEVELS

Elevated levels of low density lipoprotein (LDL) and smoking have long been recognized as risk factors for atherosclerosis and coronary hear t disease (CHD). However, the mechanisms by which these factors contri bute to the disease have not been fully elucidated. It has been postul ated from in vitro studies using serum and LDL from smokers that smoki ng increases the oxidation of LDL, which in turn contributes to athero genesis. We know of no direct evidence linking oxidized LDL (oxLDL) in human arteries to increased atherosclerosis in individuals who show e levated serum thiocyanate levels (HST) as an indicator of recent smoki ng. We have studied arterial samples from smokers micromorphometricall y and found that 'smokers' have a greater area in which oxLDL can be i dentified in the early stages of the disease than do 'nonsmokers',i.e. , individuals with low serum thiocyanate levels (LST). This study demo nstrates a positive correlation between the extent of oxLDL in the fat ty streaks as well as the fatty plaques of standardized core sample ar eas of the thoracic and abdominal aortas of a sample group of young pe ople, aged 15-34, who have evidence of recent smoking based on their p ostmortem serum thiocyanate levels.