The Endothelium, A Protagonist in the Pathophysiology of Critical Illness: Focus on Cellular Markers

Table 1

Overview endothelial progenitor cells in sepsis.

Study group	Study type	Phenotype EPC	Main findings
Becchi et al. [15]	Case-control; sepsis (𝑛=24)	CD34+ KDR+ in isolated PBMC; CD34+ KDR+ CD133+ in isolated CD34+ cells	(i) Increased % EPC the first 72 h after sepsis; (ii) EPC severe sepsis ≫ sepsis
Cribbs et al. [16]	Case-control sepsis (𝑛=86)	CFU-EPC	(i) Decreased CFU-EPC in sepsis; (ii) Inversely associated with SOFA
Luo et al. [17]	MODS model in pigs (𝑛=20)	CD133+ CD34+ in WB; CFU-EPC; Migration to VEGF	Decreased EPC, CFU-EPC and migratory function in MODS
Mayr et al. [18]	LPS in healthy volunteers (𝑛=32)	CD34+ KDR+ CD133+ EPC in WB; CFU-EPC	(i) Decrease in EPC number with nadir at 6 h post LPS; (ii) Decreased CFU-EPC nadir 4 h after LPS
Patschan et al. [19]	Case-control sepsis (𝑛=40)	KDR+ CD133+ in isolated PBMC; CFU-EPC	(i) Increased % EPC in sepsis; (ii) Decreased CFU-EPC in sepsis
Rafat et al. [20]	Case-control sepsis (𝑛=32)	CD34+ KDR+ CD133+ in isolated PBMC	(i) Increased % EPC in sepsis; (ii) Lower % EPC in nonsurvivors
Schlichting et al. [21]	Case-control severe sepsis (𝑛=18)	CFU-EPC	No difference
van Ierssel et al. [22]	Case-control severe sepsis (𝑛=30)	CD34+ KDR+ in WB; Migration to SDF-1𝛼 and VEGF	(i) Decreased absolute number; (ii) Decreased migratory capacity; (iii) Impending organ dysfunction the first week was associated with lower EPC and a trend to impaired migration

CFU-EPC: EPC colony forming units; EPC: endothelial progenitor cells, LPS: lipopolysaccharides; MODS: multiorgan dysfunction syndrome; PBMC: peripheral blood mononuclear cells; SDF-1𝛼: stromal derived factor 1 𝛼; SOFA: sequential organ failure assessment; VEGF: vascular endothelial growth factor; WB: whole blood.