The synergistic effect of vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 and coronary artery disease on brain-derived neurotrophic factor

Background Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) is important for neural protection and energy homeostasis. In this study, we examined the effects of vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 (VCAM-1) and coronary artery disease (CAD) on BDNF. Methods Subjects who had undergone diagnostic angiography for angina were recruited, and a total of 240 subjects (144 with CAD and 96 without CAD) were enrolled. Serum BDNF was determined at 0, 30, and 120 min during an oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) to calculate the area under the curve (AUC) for BDNF. Serum VCAM-1 was determined at fasting. Results Significantly lower AUC of BDNF (42.8 ± 10.7 vs. 47.4 ± 11.7 ng-h/ml, P = 0.002) and higher serum VCAM-1 (583 ± 383 vs. 482 ± 171 ng/ml, P = 0.017) were noted in subjects with CAD compared to those without CAD. High VCAM-1 level was an independent predictor of low AUC of BDNF in subjects with and without CAD (95%CI between − 0.011 and − 0.002, P = 0.008; − 0.033 and − 0.002, P = 0.029, respectively). Serum BDNF was lowest in the CAD subjects with high VCAM-1 levels at all time points during OGTT. Conclusion Our results showed that CAD was associated with low serum BDNF in response to OGTT, and VCAM-1 had a synergistic effect with CAD on the BDNF.