Aim: To investigate the count of circulating tissue factor-positive (TF⁺) procoagulant microparticles (MPs) in patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM).
Methods: This case-control study included patients with T1DM and age and sex-matched healthy volunteers. The counts of phosphatidylserine-positive (PS⁺) MPs and TF⁺PS⁺MPs and the subgroups derived from different cell types were measured in the peripheral blood sample of the two groups using multicolor flow cytometric assay. We compared the counts of each MP between groups as well as the ratio of the TF⁺PS⁺MPs and PS⁺MPs (TF⁺PS⁺MPs/PS⁺MPs).
Results: We recruited 36 patients with T1DM and 36 matched healthy controls. Compared with healthy volunteers, PS⁺MPs, TF⁺PS⁺MPs and TF⁺PS⁺MPs/PS⁺MPs were elevated in patients with T1DM (PS⁺MPs: 1078.5 ± 158.08 vs 686.84 ± 122.04/μL, P  <0.001; TF⁺PS⁺MPs: 202.10 ± 47.47 vs 108.33 ± 29.42/μL, P  <0.001; and TF⁺PS⁺MPs/PS⁺MPs: 0.16 ± 0.04 vs 0.19 ± 0.05, P = 0.004), mostly derived from platelet, lymphocytes and endothelial cells. In the subgroup analysis, the counts of total and platelet TF⁺PS⁺MPs were increased in patients with diabetic retinopathy (DR) and with higher HbA1c, respectively.
Conclusion: Circulating TF⁺PS⁺MPs and those derived from platelet, lymphocytes and endothelial cells were elevated in patients with T1DM.
Keywords: type 1 diabetes mellitus, microparticles, tissue factor, diabetic retinopathy