Glycocalyx and Oxidative Stress in Endothelial Function (Part 2) (GlikoOxEND)

The Role of Glycocalyx and Oxidative Stress in Endothelial Function (Part 2)

The primary research objective of the project is to determine the role of eGC in microvascular reactivity in patients with coronary heart disease (CHD) before and after bypass grafting (cross-sectional study 2).The main objective of the project is to increase the excellence and interdisciplinarity of scientific work at MEFOS by connecting researchers from different scientific fields, improving conditions and resources for scientific work, and increasing international cooperation, in line with strategic objective 1: raising scientific excellence. The results of the project could provide pathophysiological insight into the development and maintenance of endothelial dysfunction in CVD, as well as identify new biomarkers for CVD.

Study Overview

• Status: Recruiting
• Conditions: Coronary Heart Disease

Detailed Description

The primary objective of this project is to determine the association between endothelial glycocalyx (eGC) and myocardial revascularization in patients undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting and clinical outcomes of treatment (observational prospective study 2).

Specific objective 2.1: Measure eGC thickness in coronary artery disease patients before and after surgery.

Specific objective 2.2: Determine the reactivity of the bypass graft sample in in vitro experiments.

Specific objective 2.3: Quantify soluble markers of eGC, oxidative stress, and inflammation from serum and PBMC samples, as well as antioxidant capacity.

Specific objective 2.4: Determine the association between the results of functional tests, eGC, and markers from specific objective 2.3 with clinical outcomes of treatment.

• Study Type: Observational
• Enrollment (Estimated): 35

Contacts and Locations

• Study Contact: Name: Ines Drenjančević, MD, PhD; Phone Number: +385912241406; Email: ines.drenjancevic@mefos.hr

Study Locations

• Croatia
  • Osijek, Croatia, 31000
    • Recruiting
    • Osijek University Hospital

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: Adult; Older Adult
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No

• Sampling Method: Probability Sample

Study Population

Adult patients undergoing elective coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG)

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• adult patients of both sexes over 18 years of age
• Caucasian
• undergoing elective coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG)
• provided written informed consent

Exclusion Criteria:

• emergency surgery
• sepsis or severe systemic inflammation before surgery
• severe renal or hepatic insufficiency
• immunosuppression
• serious comorbidities (e.g., active cancer)
• therapies that could affect oxidative stress (e.g., high doses of corticosteroids)

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Number of groups / cohorts

1

Cohorts and Interventions

Group / Cohort
Coronary Heart Disease (CHD) patients; Adult patients of both sexes over 18 years of age, undergoing elective coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) and who provided written informed consent

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Endothelial glycocalyx	Measurement of the thickness of endothelial glycocalyx in coronary heart disease patients before and after bypass surgery - measured by Glycocheck	Perioperative/Periprocedural

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Bypass graft sample reactivity	Determine the reactivity of the bypass graft sample in in vitro experiments - measured by isolated vessel setup	Baseline, at one time point
Endothelial glycocalyx soluble markers	Quantification of soluble markers of endothelial glycocalyx from serum or plasma samples in the specified groups - measured by ELISA assays (syndecan-1, syndecan-4, glypican-1, MMP-9)	Perioperative/Periprocedural
Inflammation	Quantification of inflammation from peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) in the specified groups - measured by Luminex assay (cytokine profile) and flow cytometry (macrophage frequency)	Perioperative/Periprocedural
Antioxidant capacity	Quantification of antioxidative enzyme concentration and activation from serum samples in the specified groups - measured by ELISA assays and UV-Vis spectrophotometry (SOD, GPx, CAT)	Perioperative/Periprocedural
Intracellular oxidative stress production	Quantification of intracellular oxidative stress production from peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) in the specified groups - measured by flow cytometry (DCF-DA and DHE)	Perioperative/Periprocedural
Oxidative stress biomarkers	Quantification of oxidative stress biomarkers from serum samples in the specified groups - measured by ELISA assays (MPO, 8-iso prostaglandin F2a, OxLDL, AOPP)	Perioperative/Periprocedural

Other Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Blood pressure	Automatic oscillometric measurement of systolic and diastolic blood measurement (mmHg)	Perioperative/Periprocedural
Heart rate	Automatic oscillometric measurement of heart rate (bpm)	Perioperative/Periprocedural
Body Mass Index	Measurement of BMI (kg/m2)	Perioperative/Periprocedural
Body composition	Body composition and body fluid status measurement by a four-terminal portable impedance analyzer. Based on the value of skin resistance (Ohm) empirically derived formulas (the original manufacturer's software) will be used to calculate the estimated Fat Free Mass (FFM kg) and Fat (Fat Mass kg).	Perioperative/Periprocedural
Body fluid status	Body fluid status measurement by a four-terminal portable impedance analyzer. Based on the value of skin resistance (Ohm) empirically derived formulas (the original manufacturer's software) will be used to calculate the estimated Total Body Water (TBW L), Extracellular Water (ECW L), Intracellular Water (ICW L), Plasma Fluid (PF L) and Interstitial Fluid (IF L).	Perioperative/Periprocedural

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Josip Juraj Strossmayer University of Osijek

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): October 1, 2025
• Primary Completion (Estimated): September 30, 2029
• Study Completion (Estimated): September 30, 2029

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: February 17, 2026
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: February 27, 2026
• First Posted (Actual): March 5, 2026

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): March 9, 2026
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: March 5, 2026
• Last Verified: October 1, 2025

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: Oxidative stress; Inflammation; Coronary Artery Disease; Endothelium; Glycocalyx; Myocardial Revascularization
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Vascular Diseases; Cardiovascular Diseases; Pathologic Processes; Heart Diseases; Arteriosclerosis; Arterial Occlusive Diseases; Myocardial Ischemia; Pathological Conditions, Signs and Symptoms; Inflammation; Coronary Artery Disease; Coronary Disease
• Other Study ID Numbers: R1-10842/2025

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: NO

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No