Lactate dehydrogenase
LDHAproteinLactate dehydrogenase released from ischemic cardiomyocytes and endothelial cells serves as an acute myocardial injury and tissue-damage marker.
Pathway placement
Cascade stepMyocardial injury (shared endpoint)
Confidencemedium
RationaleMyocardial and endothelial cell injury marker; ischemic damage indicator.
Also acts inSystemic / off-pathway
Druggability
DruggableYes
Known drugs / candidates1
Small-molecule tractableYes
Antibody tractableNo
EnsemblENSG00000134333
Type I vs Type II discrimination
ScoresType-II-associated
R — rupture / Type-I—
C — confounder / Type-II67
A — assay feasibility72
E — evidence strength50
T1DI (composite)9
Specificity differential (R−C)-51.7
Confounder panel (Type-II drivers)
1sepsis / systemic inflammationn/a
2anemia / acute blood lossn/a
3hypovolemia / dehydrationn/a
4tachyarrhythmian/a
5hypoxemia / respiratory failuremag 2
6hypertensive emergencyn/a
7high-demand / peri-operative stressn/a
Coverage: 1/7 confounders with evidence
Tier: deep-scored (abstract-extracted) · 1 supporting references. See the discrimination table for all markers.
Assay & specimen
Validated clinical assay
Specimen
Serum or plasma (avoid hemolysis)
Collection tube
Serum separator (gold/red-top, SST) · Lithium heparin (green-top)
Method / principle
Enzymatic kinetic (lactate→pyruvate, IFCC)
Reagent / substrate
L-lactate + NAD+ → pyruvate + NADH, read 340 nm
Platform
Automated chemistry analyzer
Turnaround · availability
Routine · Universal
Literature evidence(3)
- Association between the endothelial activation and stress index and cardiometabolic multimorbidity: Results from the NHANES 2003 to 2020.Medicine · 2026 · PMID 41961654 · doi
- Single-cell sequencing combined with transcriptomics and in vivo and in vitro analysis reveals the landscape of ferroptosis in myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury.FASEB journal : official publication of the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology · 2024 · PMID 39520298 · doi
- Proteomic changes related to "bewildered" circulating platelets in the acute coronary syndrome.Proteomics · 2011 · PMID 21751358 · doi