People who smoke cigarettes may boost their risk of clogged heart arteries by weakening a gene that is otherwise protective of these important blood vessels, US researchers said Monday. <\/p>\n
The findings point to a genetic explanation for how smoking can lead to the plaque buildup that stiffens arteries and causes heart disease, said the report in the journal Circulation. <\/p>\n
\"This has been one of the first big steps towards solving the complex puzzle of gene-environment interactions that lead to coronary heart disease,\" said co-author Danish Saleheen, assistant professor of biostatistics and epidemiology at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. <\/p>\n
Researchers pooled genetic data on more than 140,000 people from more than two dozen earlier studies, with a particular focus on regions of the genome that have been previously associated with a higher risk of plaque buildup in the heart's arteries. <\/p>\n
\"A change in a single DNA 'letter' on chromosome 15, near the gene that expresses an enzyme (ADAMTS7) produced in blood vessels, was associated with a 12 percent reduction in heart risk in nonsmokers,\" said the report. <\/p>\n
\"However, smokers with this same variation had only a five percent lower risk of coronary heart disease -- reducing by over half the protective effect of this genetic variation.\" <\/p>\n
Follow-up lab studies showed that in cells that line arteries of the human heart, the production of the enzyme ADAMTS7 dropped significantly when the cells contained this single-letter DNA variant. <\/p>\n
Another experiment showed when coronary artery-lining cells were exposed to the liquid extract of cigarette smoke, the cells' production of ADAMTS7 more than doubled. <\/p>\n
If researchers can find other ways to inhibit this enzyme, they might be able to help smokers and others at heightened risk of coronary heart disease, said co-author Muredach Reilly, director of the Irving Institute for Clinical and Translational Research at Columbia University Medical Center. <\/p>\n
Cigarette smoking is known to cause about one in five cases of coronary heart disease, and is linked to approximately 1.6 million deaths worldwide each year. <\/p>\n
\"Through these large-scale genetic studies, we're beginning to understand the genetic variations that drive risk in response to certain environmental exposures or lifestyle behaviors,\" said Reilly. <\/p>\n
\"Not everyone reacts the same to the same exposures or behaviors. For example, some people who don't exercise develop diabetes while others do not,\" he added. <\/p>\n
\"So, instead of saying there are rules for everybody, we can specify which interventions will be especially beneficial for specific populations or individuals and focus our health resources more efficiently.\" <\/p>\n
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See the original post: People who smoke cigarettes may boost their risk of clogged heart arteries by weakening a gene that is otherwise protective of these important blood vessels, US researchers said Monday. The findings point to a genetic explanation for how smoking can lead to the plaque buildup that stiffens arteries and causes heart disease, said the report in the journal Circulation. Continue reading
\nSmoking Weakens a Gene That Protects Arteries - Newsmax<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"