Genetic Markers

The Cardiovascular Disease Continuum Validated: Clinical Evidence of Improved Patient Outcomes

“…235 A variant in the DNA code that is associated with a specific disease phenotype may be used as a genetic marker. Researchers have identified a number of genetic markers that are associated with an increased risk of CVD; a review of some of these genetic markers was provided by Gibbons et al 259 CVD is a polygenic disease that develops through interaction among multiple genes, as well as through interaction with environmental and physiological factors. 259 Therefore, research is more focused on identification of groups of markers, known as haplotypes, which occur together on 1 chromosome and are passed along together in families or populations, rather than on identification of a single-nucleotide polymorphism (a variant at a single DNA base pair).…”

Cardiovascular gene delivery: The good road is awaiting☆

“…With this realization, much interest now resides in the field of proteomics for therapeutic and biomarker advances in cardiovascular diseases [242][243][244]. Undoubtedly, the currently modest clinical improvements described here will improve over time, but much of the innovation may reside in a more integrated understanding of the cardiovascular genome and proteome, particularly as these therapeutic advances relate to molecular signaling pathways [245].…”

Methods for Evaluating Endothelial Function in Humans

“…103 Similar conclusions were drawn from the studies on the polymorphisms of other genes of which the products have been implicated in endothelial dysfunction (eg, methylene hydrofolate reductase, bradykinin receptor, interleukin-6, leukocyte adhesion molecule-1, and angiotensin-converting enzyme) that were either limited to a single investigation or yielded inconsistent results. 104 Future genetic association studies, whether assessing clinical end points, or intermediate phenotypes such as endothelial function, need to extend their focus on the analysis of multiple genes and their combined effects on the classical cardiovascular risk profile. The development of new high-throughput genotyping technologies, as well as the use of alternative approaches that allow genomewide analysis (as opposed to single molecule approach), such as DNA microarrays and serial analysis of gene expression, represent great potential for further clarification of the molecular pathways involved in endothelial dysfunction and atherosclerosis.…”