Adiponectin Acts as an Endogenous Antithrombotic Factor

Publisher Website
Google Scholar
Abstract
Objective— Obesity is a common risk factor in insulin resistance and cardiovascular diseases. Although hypoadiponectinemia is associated with obesity-related metabolic and vascular diseases, the role of adiponectin in thrombosis remains elusive. Methods and Results— We investigated platelet thrombus formation in adiponectin knockout (APN-KO) male mice (8 to 12 weeks old) fed on a normal diet. There was no significant difference in platelet counts or coagulation parameters between wild-type (WT) and APN-KO mice. However, APN-KO mice showed an accelerated thrombus formation on carotid arterial injury with a He-Ne laser (total thrombus volume: 13.36±4.25×10 7 arbitrary units for APN-KO and 6.74±2.87×10 7 arbitrary units for WT; n=10; P −1 , as well as platelet aggregation induced by low concentrations of agonists, was enhanced in APN-KO mice, and recombinant adiponectin inhibited the enhanced platelet aggregation. In WT mice, adenovirus-mediated overexpression of adiponectin additionally attenuated thrombus formation. Conclusion— Adiponectin deficiency leads to enhanced thrombus formation and platelet aggregation. The present study reveals a new role of adiponectin as an endogenous antithrombotic factor.