Study of Circulating Monocytes in Patients With Ischemic Vascular Disease

The purpose of this research study is to discover the functions of circulating white blood cells, called monocytes, and associated circulating substances in heart attack and ischemic stroke patients. Ischemic Strokes (clots) occur as a result of an obstruction within a blood vessel supplying blood to the brain. A type of monocyte carrying a surface marker called "P2X4" helps the immune system sense and respond to danger signals from the body such as heart muscle and brain tissue injuries. The researchers expect to learn more about how these monocyte cells react to heart and brain tissue injury, and how the cells may then produce proteins or other chemical substances which promote the healing of heart muscle after heart attack and brain tissue after an ischemic stroke.

Inclusion Criteria: * STEMI Patients: Men and women aged 18 years and over, with symptoms, physical signs and ECG changes characteristic of STEMI. * NSTEMI Patients: Men and women aged 18 years and over, with symptoms, physical signs and ECG changes characteristic of NSTEMI. * Stable CAD Patients: men and women aged 18 years and older with coronary artery disease proven by prior MI history, angiography or stress test but without any unstable angina or acute coronary syndrome. * Ischemic Stroke Patients: Men and women aged 18 years and over, with symptoms, physical signs and CT/MRI changes characteristic of ischemic stroke. * Healthy Controls: Men and women aged 18 years and over, without heart failure, coronary disease, hypertension, diabetes or other chronic diseases. Control subjects will be recruited from within the community of UConn Health via advertisement. Exclusion Criteria: * Subjects who are unable to give informed consent (with the exception of the ischemic stroke arm patients, see Protocol Design below) and pregnant subjects. * Subjects who had any history of embolic, ischemic or hemorrhagic stroke within the last 12 months.