New Genetic Risk Factor for MI is found

[Dr.Vad]

Major Discovery: Significant Genetic Risk Factor for MI Pinpointed

May 3, 2007 (Ottawa, ON and Reykjavik, Iceland) – Two separate research groups have discovered a genetic variant conferring an increased risk of MI [1,2]. The sequence of DNA identified--a region on chromosome 9--is thought to account for 20% of the incidence of MI in populations of European origin and a third of cases of early-onset MI, making it one of the most significant genetic risk factors for heart attack identified to date.

The two groups - one led by Dr Ruth McPherson (University of Ottawa Heart Institute, ON) and the other by Dr Anna Helgadottir (deCODE Genetics Inc, Reykjavik, Iceland)- report their work online May 3, 2007 in Science. McPherson told that her own group and that of deCODE Genetics "found exactly the same. The region of chromosome 9 [that they identified] is identical to what we found. So we are confident that this is a valid and robust finding."

Senior author of the deCODE paper, Dr Kari Stefansson, told that this work has huge implications. People who possess two copies of the identified allele are at double the risk of an early-onset heart attack compared with those who don't carry it at all. The discovery could thus help identify people at high future risk for heart disease, allowing them to make lifestyle changes and take early preventive medication to reduce their risk.

Dr Eric J Topol (Scripps Translational Science Institute, San Diego, CA), who was not involved with the research, agrees: "These are the two most important studies to date in determining susceptibility genes for MI and coronary artery disease [CAD]. This is a major discovery,"

1.McPherson R, Pertsemlidis A, Kavaslar N, et al. A common allele on chromosome 9 associated with coronary heart disease. Science 2007;

2.Helgadottir A, Thorleifsson G, Manolescu A, et al A common variant on chromosome 9p21 affects the risk of myocardial infarction. Science 2007;