A liver protein is linked to coronary artery disease risk
In an analysis of 278 patients with heart disease and biobank data, genetic regulation of a liver-derived protein was associated with higher artery disease risk.
Limit: The initial genetic analyses drew on only 278 patients with heart disease
Edited by Boris Djordjevic · AgingResearch.News
In an observational study, researchers analyzed genetic, gene-activity and protein data from 278 patients with established coronary artery disease in the PRECAD2 cohort. They investigated macrophage-stimulating protein 1, or MST1, a liver-derived protein, and used biobank data for validation.
Genetic variants regulated liver MST1 gene activity and affected circulating MST1 protein levels. A Mendelian randomization analysis, which uses genetic differences to examine disease links, linked liver MST1 gene activity to coronary artery disease risk. In the UK Biobank, higher blood MST1 levels were associated with higher body mass index and LDL, or “bad,” cholesterol, and higher incidence of heart attack and stroke. In artery plaques from AtheroExpress, MST1 protein levels were linked to major cardiovascular events over three years, with a hazard ratio of 1.31, a relative measure of risk.
Why it matters
Chronic inflammation contributes to atherosclerosis, the buildup of plaque in arteries. The researchers proposed MST1 as a potential marker and treatment target linking liver gene regulation to plaque inflammation and cardiovascular events.
Caveats
The findings rely on observational associations and genetic modeling, which cannot show whether targeting the protein will prevent heart disease in patients. The initial genetic analyses drew on 278 patients with existing coronary artery disease.
