BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to investigate the association between serum concentrations of the brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), platelet reactivity and inflammatory markers, as well as its association with BDNF encoding gene variants in type 2 diabetic patients (T2DM) during acetylsalicylic acid (ASA) therapy.

MATERIAL AND METHODS: This retrospective, open-label study enrolled 91 patients. Serum BDNF, genotype variants, hematological, biochemical, and inflammatory markers were measured. Blood samples were taken in the morning 2–3 h after the last ASA dose. The BDNF genotypes for selected variants were analyzed by use of the iPLEX Sequenom assay.

RESULTS: In multivariate linear regression analysis, CADP-CT >74 sec (p<0.001) and sP-selectin concentration (p=0.03) were predictive of high serum BDNF. In multivariate logistic regression analysis, CADP-CT >74 sec (p=0.02) and IL-6 concentration (p=0.03) were risk factors for serum BDNF above the median. Non-significant differences were observed between intronic SNP rs925946, missense SNP rs6265, and intronic SNP rs4923463 allelic groups and BDNF concentrations in the investigated cohort.

CONCLUSIONS: Chronic inflammatory condition and enhanced immune system are associated with the production of BDNF, which may be why the serum BDNF level in T2DM patients with high platelet reactivity was higher compared to subjects with normal platelet reactivity in this study.

Keywords: Blood Platelets - cytology, Aspirin - therapeutic use, Alleles, Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor - blood, Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 - genetics, Gene Expression Regulation, Genetic Predisposition to Disease, Genotype, Inflammation - blood, Interleukin-6 - blood, Introns, Multivariate Analysis, Mutation, Missense, P-Selectin - blood, Platelet Activation, Platelet Function Tests, Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide, Prospective Studies, Quality Control