Posted by Dr.Prahallad Panda on August 5, 2010
Control of LDL, the bad cholesterol can now be targeted a a better way; it is hoped.
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New Gene Variants Linked to Lipid Levels
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In a genetic analysis of more than 100,000 people of European ancestry, researchers have found 95 common genetic variants — 59 of them previously unknown — that influence lipid levels by regulating nearby genes. |
And at least one actually causes increases in low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) by decreasing the expression in the liver of a gene called Sort1. The gene lies in a region previously linked to about a 40% increase in the risk of heart attack, but the mechanism has not been understood. |
That target may not be the gene product of Sort1 — a protein dubbed sortilin — according to Kathiresan. But the study “exposes basically a new pathway, a new way of regulating lipids, LDL cholesterol, that’s actually independent of or different than previous approaches,” he said. |
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This entry was posted on August 5, 2010 at 9:03 am and is filed under Uncategorized.
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