Their levels of ICAM-1 merely sit at the high end of the normal range. Ridker's group also discovered that men with the highest levels of C-reactive protein in their blood had three times the risk of heart attack, and two times the risk of stroke, compared to those with the lowest levels. Studies are being done to determine if the same holds true for women. There doesn't appear to be any reason why adhesion molecules would act differently in women. ICAM-1 gives us insight into exactly what's happening.
Adhesion molecules can pick white cells out of blood as they float by.
These white cells, called monocytes and macrophages, destroy invading microbes like viruses and bacteria. The first step in getting them to the site of an infection involves a union with an adhesion molecule. Apparently, there is a harmful side to this healing process. In some people, sticky white cells get stuck between the blood vessel lining and the layer of muscles behind the lining. They start building what are called foam cells, which become collection points for oxidized low-density cholesterol, clumps of blood platelets, decaying muscle cells, fibrous tissue, and even hard calcium deposits.