title: Genetic determinants of arterial stiffness.
abstract: Stiffness of large arteries (called arteriosclerosis) is an independent predictor of cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. Although previous studies have shown that arterial stiffness is moderately heritable, genetic factors contributing to arterial stiffness are largely unknown. In this paper, we reviewed the available literature on genetic variants that are potentially related to arterial stiffness. Most variants have shown mixed depictions of their association with arterial stiffness across multiple studies. Various methods to measure arterial stiffness at different arterial sites can contribute to these inconsistent results. In addition, studies in patient populations with hypertension or atherosclerosis may overestimate the impact of genetic variants on arterial stiffness. Future studies are recommended to standardize current measures of arterial stiffness in different age groups. Studies conducted in normal healthy subjects may also provide better opportunities to find novel genetic variants of arterial stiffness.
authors.affiliation: School of Nursing, University of Virginia, 225 Jeanette Lancaster Way, Charlottesville, VA, 22903-3388, USA, jl3zj@virginia.edu.
authors.forename: Jeongok G
authors.initials: JG
authors.lastname: Logan
authors.forename: Mary B
authors.initials: MB
authors.lastname: Engler
authors.forename: Hyungsuk
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kim
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001161:Arteriosclerosis / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000235:genetics* / Q000503:physiopathology; D005819:Genetic Markers; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease; D006801:Humans; D010641:Phenotype; D011110:Polymorphism, Genetic; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D063177:Pulse Wave Analysis; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012307:Risk Factors; D059289:Vascular Stiffness / Q000235:genetics*
chemical_list: D005819:Genetic Markers