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World J Cardiol. Nov 26, 2014; 6(11): 1135-1139
Published online Nov 26, 2014. doi: 10.4330/wjc.v6.i11.1135
Published online Nov 26, 2014. doi: 10.4330/wjc.v6.i11.1135
Role of microparticles in endothelial dysfunction and arterial hypertension
Thomas Helbing, Christoph Olivier, Christoph Bode, Martin Moser, Philipp Diehl, Department of Cardiology and Angiology I, Heart Center Freiburg University, 79106 Freiburg, Germany
Author contributions: All authors contributed to this paper.
Correspondence to: Philipp Diehl, MD, FESC, Department of Cardiology and Angiology I, Heart Center Freiburg University, Hugstetterstr. 55, 79106 Freiburg, Germany. philipp.diehl@universitaets-herzzentrum.de
Telephone: +49-761-27034010 Fax: +49-761-27035600
Received: May 30, 2014
Revised: August 29, 2014
Accepted: October 1, 2014
Published online: November 26, 2014
Revised: August 29, 2014
Accepted: October 1, 2014
Published online: November 26, 2014
Core Tip
Core tip: Microparticles are small cell vesicles which can be released from many cells (e.g., endothelial cells, platelets, leukocytes) into circulation and that can be quantified with flow cytometry. Several studies have shown that specific microparticles subtypes are increased in conditions enhanced vascular inflammation and coagulation. Thereby, microparticles have become surrogate markers, which can be used to assess for example leukocyte and endothelial cell activation. Additionally, by fusion with other cells, microparticles transfer cellular components of their parental cells to their target cells, which often results in altered function of the target cells.