Intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) is a membrane bound molecule that plays an important role in the pathogenic inflammatory responses observed in vasculitis. The aim of this study was to determine whether levels of soluble ICAM-1 sICAM-1) shedding into the circulation reflect the vascular injury found in nailfold capillaroscopy as well as systemic vasculitis in RA patients. We determined serum levels of sICAM-1 and soluble interleukin-2 receptor (sIL-2R) by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay in 79 RA patients. Serum levels of sICAM-1 were significantly increased in RA patients compared to 30 healthy controls. RA patients with clinical signs of systemic vasculitis showed significantly higher levels of sICAM-1 than those without vascular involvement. Although no significant correlation between sICAM-1 levels and the capillaroscopy findings were found, 75% of the patients with severe vascular changes in capillaroscopy exceeded normal sICAM-1 cut off value. Serum sICAM-1 concentrations correlated significantly with the erythrocyte sedimentation rate and serum sIL-2R, but not with the duration of RA, radiological stages, Ritchie index, age or type of treatment. These findings suggest that increased levels of sICAM-1 in serum of RA patients reflect systemic vascular involvement rather than a local vascular injury.

Protease inhibitors, such as alpha 1-antitrypsin (A1AT) and alpha 1-antichymotrypsin (A1AChy) have been considered in searching for new biochemical tumor markers useful at initial diagnosis, staging, and monitoring of cancer diseases after surgery. Levels of both antiproteases in serum of 32 patients with gastric cancer and 61 patients with colorectal cancer at initial diagnosis were studied. A significant increase of A1AT and A1AChy was found in the initial stages of both cancer groups as compared to healthy blood donors. A significant correlation between A1AT and A1AChy serum level and cancer stages was observed. The antiprotease serum concentrations progressively increased with increasing severity of gastric and colorectal cancers. The A1AChy level correlated with the histologic grade of both cancers and were higher in Grade III than in Grade II. These findings could be useful in the early diagnosis of gastric and colorectal cancers and in complex preoperative diagnostic procedure to estimate the stage of disease.

Von Willebrand factor antigen (vWF:Ag) is synthesized and secreted by endothelial cells. In the present study we tried to assess the relationship between plasma level of vWF:Ag and vascular damage in patients with vasculitis. The study was carried out on 59 patients with connective tissue diseases. Vasculitis was diagnosed by biopsies of the skin. The patients with vasculitis had a significantly elevated level of vWF:Ag; however, no significant correlation between the amount of plasma vWF:Ag and the degree of vasculitis was found. The obtained results show that the plasma level of vWF:Ag may reflect the presence of vascular, especially endothelial, damage in patients with connective tissue diseases.

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