Objective:To explore the relationship among plasma levels of adiponectin (APN) ,lipoprotein‐associated phospholipase A2 (Lp‐PLA2) and carotid atherosclerotic plaque stability in patients with acute cerebral infarction (ACI) .Methods:A total of 149 ACI patients ,who hospitalized in our hospital within 24h after onset ,were en‐rolled as ACI group .Another 90 subjects without cerebral infarction from our physical examination center were re‐garded as non‐ACI control group .According to carotid ultrasound results ,ACI patients were divided into normal ca‐rotid group (n=36) ,stable plaque group (n=47) and unstable plaque group (n=66) .Enzyme linked immunosor‐bent assay (ELISA) was used to measure plasma levels of APN and Lp‐PLA2 in all groups ,and the results were com‐pared then .Results: (1) Compared with non‐ACI control group ,there was significant reduction in plasma APN level [ (20.02 ± 4.01) ng/ml vs .(8.95 ± 3.07) ng/ml] and significant rise in Lp‐PLA2 [ (40.31 ± 8.27)μg/L vs . (58.21 ± 9.21)μg/L] in ACI group ,P<0.01 both ;(2) From normal carotid group ,stable plaque group to unsta‐ble plaque group ,APN level gradually reduced [(18.21 ± 2.98) ng/ml vs .(10.31 ± 2.12) ng/ml vs .(6.58 ± 1.96) ng/ml] ,while Lp‐PLA2 level gradually rose [ (42.25 ± 6.91)μg/L vs .(50.11 ± 5.78)μg/L vs .(69.01 ± 11.90)μg/L] ,there was significant difference in pairwise comparisons ,P<0.05 or <0.01;(3) Linear correlation analysis indicated that plasma APN level was inversely correlated with Lp‐PLA2 level in ACI group (r= -0.782 ,P=0.036) .Con‐clusion:Plasma levels of adiponectin and lipoprotein‐associated phospholipase A2 are closely associated with carotid athero‐sclerotic plaque instability ,their combine detecting is help to diagnosis and judging patient′s condition .