Researchers provide genetic associations from a genome-wide scan for cardiovascular dise...( Boston MAResearchers from Boston Uni...),Health

Boston, MAResearchers from Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM), Boston University School of Public Health (BUSPH), and the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI), have completed analyses of a genome-wide scan on a group of two generations of participants from the landmark Framingham Heart Study (FHS). The analyses, which examine genetic differences that potentially affect the risk for cardiovascular disease and other disorders using data collected from FHS participants, are described in a series of articles published today in the on-line open access issue of BMC Medical Genetics.

Known as the Framingham 100K genome-wide scan, the results also are freely available through the database of Genotypes and Phenotypes, or dbGaP (http://view.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/dbgap), developed by the National Library of Medicines National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI). The database provides a number of electronic enhancements for viewing and examining the data, such as enabling users to drill down for precise details on all associations and allowing the data to be explored in the context of other NCBI genomic resources.

We are excited by the possibilities of genome-wide association studies in uncovering genetic components involved in cardiovascular disease and its risk factors, said lead author of the overview paper L. Adrienne Cupples, PhD, a professor of biostatistics at BUSPH.

The Framingham Heart Study is a large, longitudinal study supported by the NHLBI of the National Institutes of Health and conducted in collaboration with Boston University. The study has been the source of key research findings regarding the contribution of high blood pressure, high cholesterol, cigarette smoking and other risk factors to the development of cardiovascular disease.

Cardiovascular diseases are major illnesses among Americans, affecting about one-third of the populatio
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