PLATELET GP IIIA PIA AND GP IB VARIABLE NUMBER TANDEM REPEAT POLYMORPHISMS AND MARKERS OF PLATELET ACTIVATION IN ACUTE STROKE

A number of polymorphisms of the platelet glycoprotein (GP) Ib-V-IX an d IIb/IIIa complexes have been described, and the PIA polymorphism of GP IIIa has been associated with coronary thrombosis. We determined th e levels of beta-thromboglobulin (beta-TG) and platelet factor 4 (PF4) and the genotype distributions of PIA and a variable number tandem re peat (VNTR) polymorphism of GP Ib in subjects with acute stroke (n=609 ) and healthy control subjects (n=435). Levels of beta-TG were higher in patients both initially (47.4 [44.7 to 50.2] ng/mL, P<0.0001) and a fter 3 months (42.9 [40.3 to 45.7] ng/mL, P=0.03) compared with contro l subjects (39.4 [37.7 to 41.2] ng/mL). Initial levers of beta-TG were significantly higher in those who subsequently died (58.7 [52.3 to 65 .8] ng/mL) compared with those still alive (42.7 [40.1 to 45.5] ng/mL, P<0.0001), In a logistic regression model, beta-TG remained an indepe ndent predictor of poststroke mortality, with an odds ratio for an inc rease in 10 ng/mL of 1.12 (1.03 to 1.21, P=0.006). Tn subjects who had never smoked, there was a significant difference in the genotype dist ributions of patients with atherothrombotic stroke (A1/A1=147, A1/A2=7 0, and A2/A2=2) compared with controls (A1/A1=165, A1/A2=47, and A2/A2 =5, P=0.03). The PIA distribution of subjects with atherothrombotic st roke before the age of 50 years (A1/A1=19 and A1/A2+A2/A2=18) was also significantly different from age- and sex-matched controls (A1/A1=54 and A1/A2+A2/A2=20, P=0.02). We found no association of VNTR with stro ke or poststroke mortality. These data indicate that there is a persis tent state of enhanced platelet activation in subjects with acute stro ke, which is associated with poststroke mortality. The increased frequ ency of the PIA2 allele in young subjects with atherothrombotic stroke lends further support for a role of the PIA polymorphism in acute thr ombosis.