Cocaine-Induced Cardiac Alterations: Histological and Immunohistochemical Post-Mortem Analysis
<b>Background:</b> Cocaine abuse represents a serious health issue. The cardiovascular system is one of the main sites on which cocaine elicits its toxicity, as indicated by deadly events mainly related to myocardial infarction. The main aim of this study was to characterize the histolog...
Saved in:
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2025-04-01
|
| Series: | Diagnostics |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2075-4418/15/8/999 |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1849713855370887168 |
|---|---|
| author | Valeria Palumbo Michele Treglia Manuel Scimeca Francesca Servadei Erica Giacobbi Rita Bonfiglio Margherita Pallocci Pierluigi Passalacqua Fabio Del Duca Roberta Tittarelli Luca Coppeta Stefania Schiaroli Giulio Cervelli Alessandro Mauriello Luigi Tonino Marsella Silvestro Mauriello |
| author_facet | Valeria Palumbo Michele Treglia Manuel Scimeca Francesca Servadei Erica Giacobbi Rita Bonfiglio Margherita Pallocci Pierluigi Passalacqua Fabio Del Duca Roberta Tittarelli Luca Coppeta Stefania Schiaroli Giulio Cervelli Alessandro Mauriello Luigi Tonino Marsella Silvestro Mauriello |
| author_sort | Valeria Palumbo |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | <b>Background:</b> Cocaine abuse represents a serious health issue. The cardiovascular system is one of the main sites on which cocaine elicits its toxicity, as indicated by deadly events mainly related to myocardial infarction. The main aim of this study was to characterize the histological and immunohistochemical alterations related to cocaine abuse in cardiac tissue. <b>Methods:</b> Cardiac tissue samples derived from cocaine-related (<i>n</i> = 30) and not-cocaine-related deaths (<i>n</i> = 30). Histomorphology evaluations and immunohistochemistry for inflammatory biomarkers (CD45 and CD3) have been performed on formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded (FFPE) cardiac tissue samples. <b>Results:</b> A higher frequency of cardiac alterations, such as wavy fibers, interstitial edema, fibrosis and hemorrhagic extravasation, were found in the group of cocaine users compared to the control group. Moreover, immunohistochemical analysis showed higher levels of inflammatory cells infiltrate within the cocaine-related deaths group. <b>Conclusions:</b> These data could shed new light on the complex relationship between cocaine use and cardiac alterations. Specifically, our data support the evidence that cocaine abuse is related to cardiac inflammation. Therefore, the generation of an inflammatory state could promote functional and structural cardiac alterations and lead ultimately to myocardial infarction. This would explain the high frequency of acute myocardial infarction in cocaine users. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-0eb9c5276aa04f058ea65fd49fffe2df |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 2075-4418 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-04-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Diagnostics |
| spelling | doaj-art-0eb9c5276aa04f058ea65fd49fffe2df2025-08-20T03:13:51ZengMDPI AGDiagnostics2075-44182025-04-0115899910.3390/diagnostics15080999Cocaine-Induced Cardiac Alterations: Histological and Immunohistochemical Post-Mortem AnalysisValeria Palumbo0Michele Treglia1Manuel Scimeca2Francesca Servadei3Erica Giacobbi4Rita Bonfiglio5Margherita Pallocci6Pierluigi Passalacqua7Fabio Del Duca8Roberta Tittarelli9Luca Coppeta10Stefania Schiaroli11Giulio Cervelli12Alessandro Mauriello13Luigi Tonino Marsella14Silvestro Mauriello15Department of Experimental Medicine, Tor Vergata Oncoscience Research, University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, 00133 Rome, ItalyDepartment of Biomedicine and Prevention, University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, 00133 Rome, ItalyDepartment of Experimental Medicine, Tor Vergata Oncoscience Research, University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, 00133 Rome, ItalyDepartment of Experimental Medicine, Tor Vergata Oncoscience Research, University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, 00133 Rome, ItalyDepartment of Experimental Medicine, Tor Vergata Oncoscience Research, University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, 00133 Rome, ItalyDepartment of Experimental Medicine, Tor Vergata Oncoscience Research, University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, 00133 Rome, ItalyDepartment of Biomedicine and Prevention, University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, 00133 Rome, ItalyDepartment of Public Health and Infectious Diseases, “Sapienza” University of Rome, 00185 Rome, ItalyDepartment of Anatomical, Histological, Forensic and Orthopedic Sciences, Sapienza University of Rome, 00185 Rome, ItalyDepartment of Biomedicine and Prevention, University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, 00133 Rome, ItalyDepartment of Biomedicine and Prevention, University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, 00133 Rome, ItalyDepartment of Experimental Medicine, Tor Vergata Oncoscience Research, University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, 00133 Rome, ItalyDepartment of Experimental Medicine, Tor Vergata Oncoscience Research, University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, 00133 Rome, ItalyDepartment of Experimental Medicine, Tor Vergata Oncoscience Research, University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, 00133 Rome, ItalyDepartment of Biomedicine and Prevention, University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, 00133 Rome, ItalyDepartment of Biomedicine and Prevention, University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, 00133 Rome, Italy<b>Background:</b> Cocaine abuse represents a serious health issue. The cardiovascular system is one of the main sites on which cocaine elicits its toxicity, as indicated by deadly events mainly related to myocardial infarction. The main aim of this study was to characterize the histological and immunohistochemical alterations related to cocaine abuse in cardiac tissue. <b>Methods:</b> Cardiac tissue samples derived from cocaine-related (<i>n</i> = 30) and not-cocaine-related deaths (<i>n</i> = 30). Histomorphology evaluations and immunohistochemistry for inflammatory biomarkers (CD45 and CD3) have been performed on formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded (FFPE) cardiac tissue samples. <b>Results:</b> A higher frequency of cardiac alterations, such as wavy fibers, interstitial edema, fibrosis and hemorrhagic extravasation, were found in the group of cocaine users compared to the control group. Moreover, immunohistochemical analysis showed higher levels of inflammatory cells infiltrate within the cocaine-related deaths group. <b>Conclusions:</b> These data could shed new light on the complex relationship between cocaine use and cardiac alterations. Specifically, our data support the evidence that cocaine abuse is related to cardiac inflammation. Therefore, the generation of an inflammatory state could promote functional and structural cardiac alterations and lead ultimately to myocardial infarction. This would explain the high frequency of acute myocardial infarction in cocaine users.https://www.mdpi.com/2075-4418/15/8/999cocainecardiac alterationslegal medicineinflammatory biomarkersforensic toxicologyimmunohistochemistry |
| spellingShingle | Valeria Palumbo Michele Treglia Manuel Scimeca Francesca Servadei Erica Giacobbi Rita Bonfiglio Margherita Pallocci Pierluigi Passalacqua Fabio Del Duca Roberta Tittarelli Luca Coppeta Stefania Schiaroli Giulio Cervelli Alessandro Mauriello Luigi Tonino Marsella Silvestro Mauriello Cocaine-Induced Cardiac Alterations: Histological and Immunohistochemical Post-Mortem Analysis Diagnostics cocaine cardiac alterations legal medicine inflammatory biomarkers forensic toxicology immunohistochemistry |
| title | Cocaine-Induced Cardiac Alterations: Histological and Immunohistochemical Post-Mortem Analysis |
| title_full | Cocaine-Induced Cardiac Alterations: Histological and Immunohistochemical Post-Mortem Analysis |
| title_fullStr | Cocaine-Induced Cardiac Alterations: Histological and Immunohistochemical Post-Mortem Analysis |
| title_full_unstemmed | Cocaine-Induced Cardiac Alterations: Histological and Immunohistochemical Post-Mortem Analysis |
| title_short | Cocaine-Induced Cardiac Alterations: Histological and Immunohistochemical Post-Mortem Analysis |
| title_sort | cocaine induced cardiac alterations histological and immunohistochemical post mortem analysis |
| topic | cocaine cardiac alterations legal medicine inflammatory biomarkers forensic toxicology immunohistochemistry |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2075-4418/15/8/999 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT valeriapalumbo cocaineinducedcardiacalterationshistologicalandimmunohistochemicalpostmortemanalysis AT micheletreglia cocaineinducedcardiacalterationshistologicalandimmunohistochemicalpostmortemanalysis AT manuelscimeca cocaineinducedcardiacalterationshistologicalandimmunohistochemicalpostmortemanalysis AT francescaservadei cocaineinducedcardiacalterationshistologicalandimmunohistochemicalpostmortemanalysis AT ericagiacobbi cocaineinducedcardiacalterationshistologicalandimmunohistochemicalpostmortemanalysis AT ritabonfiglio cocaineinducedcardiacalterationshistologicalandimmunohistochemicalpostmortemanalysis AT margheritapallocci cocaineinducedcardiacalterationshistologicalandimmunohistochemicalpostmortemanalysis AT pierluigipassalacqua cocaineinducedcardiacalterationshistologicalandimmunohistochemicalpostmortemanalysis AT fabiodelduca cocaineinducedcardiacalterationshistologicalandimmunohistochemicalpostmortemanalysis AT robertatittarelli cocaineinducedcardiacalterationshistologicalandimmunohistochemicalpostmortemanalysis AT lucacoppeta cocaineinducedcardiacalterationshistologicalandimmunohistochemicalpostmortemanalysis AT stefaniaschiaroli cocaineinducedcardiacalterationshistologicalandimmunohistochemicalpostmortemanalysis AT giuliocervelli cocaineinducedcardiacalterationshistologicalandimmunohistochemicalpostmortemanalysis AT alessandromauriello cocaineinducedcardiacalterationshistologicalandimmunohistochemicalpostmortemanalysis AT luigitoninomarsella cocaineinducedcardiacalterationshistologicalandimmunohistochemicalpostmortemanalysis AT silvestromauriello cocaineinducedcardiacalterationshistologicalandimmunohistochemicalpostmortemanalysis |