CASP3 and atherosclerosis: For CVD, there are increases in growth/differentiation factor 15 (GDF-15), a predictor of mortality in stable coronary heart disease patients, in the galectin family, which are higher in the serum of atherosclerotic stroke patients, in chitotriosidase-1, which is implicated in the development of atherosclerosis, in P-selectin and IL-8, which are higher in unstable coronary heart disease patients, in CD40 ligand, which contributes to atherosclerosis, and caspase-3, which is expressed in atherosclerotic plaques.