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BACKGROUND: Genome-wide polygenic scores (GPS) integrate information from many common DNA variants into a single number. Because rates of coronary artery disease (CAD) are substantially higher among South Asians, a GPS to identify high-risk individuals may be particularly useful in this population. OBJECTIVES: This analysis used summary statistics from a prior genome-wide association study to derive a new GPSCAD for South Asians. METHODS: This GPSCAD was validated in 7,244 South Asian UK Biobank participants and tested in 491 individuals from a case-control study in Bangladesh. Next, a static ancestry and GPSCAD reference distribution was built using whole-genome sequencing from 1,522 Indian individuals, and a framework was tested for projecting individuals onto this static ancestry and GPSCAD reference distribution using 1,800 CAD cases and 1,163 control subjects newly recruited in India. RESULTS: The GPSCAD, containing 6,630,150 common DNA variants, had an odds ratio (OR) per SD of 1.58 in South Asian UK Biobank participants and 1.60 in the Bangladeshi study (p

Background: \ud Spontaneous coronary artery dissection (SCAD) is an increasingly recognized cause of acute coronary syndromes (ACS) afflicting predominantly younger to middle-aged women. Observational studies have reported a high prevalence of extracoronary vascular anomalies, especially fibromuscular dysplasia (FMD) and a low prevalence of coincidental cases of atherosclerosis. PHACTR1/EDN1 is a genetic risk locus for several vascular diseases, including FMD and coronary artery disease, with the putative causal noncoding variant at the rs9349379 locus acting as a potential enhancer for the endothelin-1 (EDN1) gene.\ud \ud Objectives: \ud This study sought to test the association between the rs9349379 genotype and SCAD.\ud \ud Methods: \ud Results from case control studies from France, United Kingdom, United States, and Australia were analyzed to test the association with SCAD risk, including age at first event, pregnancy-associated SCAD (P-SCAD), and recurrent SCAD.\ud \ud Results: \ud The previously reported risk allele for FMD (rs9349379-A) was associated with a higher risk of SCAD in all studies. In a meta-analysis of 1,055 SCAD patients and 7,190 controls, the odds ratio (OR) was 1.67 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.50 to 1.86) per copy of rs9349379-A. In a subset of 491 SCAD patients, the OR estimate was found to be higher for the association with SCAD in patients without FMD (OR: 1.89; 95% CI: 1.53 to 2.33) than in SCAD cases with FMD (OR: 1.60; 95% CI: 1.28 to 1.99). There was no effect of genotype on age at first event, P-SCAD, or recurrence.\ud \ud Conclusions: \ud The first genetic risk factor for SCAD was identified in the largest study conducted to date for this condition. This genetic link may contribute to the clinical overlap between SCAD and FMD.

Background Coronary artery disease (CAD) has substantial heritability and a polygenic architecture. However, the potential of genomic risk scores to help predict CAD outcomes has not been evaluated comprehensively, because available studies have involved limited genomic scope and limited sample sizes. Objectives This study sought to construct a genomic risk score for CAD and to estimate its potential as a screening tool for primary prevention. Methods Using a meta-analytic approach to combine large-scale, genome-wide, and targeted genetic association data, we developed a new genomic risk score for CAD (metaGRS) consisting of 1.7 million genetic variants. We externally tested metaGRS, both by itself and in combination with available data on conventional risk factors, in 22,242 CAD cases and 460,387 noncases from the UK Biobank. Results The hazard ratio (HR) for CAD was 1.71 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.68 to 1.73) per SD increase in metaGRS, an association larger than any other externally tested genetic risk score previously published. The metaGRS stratified individuals into significantly different life course trajectories of CAD risk, with those in the top 20% of metaGRS distribution having an HR of 4.17 (95% CI: 3.97 to 4.38) compared with those in the bottom 20%. The corresponding HR was 2.83 (95% CI: 2.61 to 3.07) among individuals on lipid-lowering or antihypertensive medications. The metaGRS had a higher C-index (C = 0.623; 95% CI: 0.615 to 0.631) for incident CAD than any of 6 conventional factors (smoking, diabetes, hypertension, body mass index, self-reported high cholesterol, and family history). For men in the top 20% of metaGRS with >2 conventional factors, 10% cumulative risk of CAD was reached by 48 years of age. Conclusions The genomic score developed and evaluated here substantially advances the concept of using genomic information to stratify individuals with different trajectories of CAD risk and highlights the potential for genomic screening in early life to complement conventional risk prediction.

Background: The taxonomy of cardiovascular (CV) diseases is divided into a broad spectrum of clinical entities. Manysuch diseases coincide in specific patient groups and suggest shared predisposition. Objectives: This study focused on coronary artery disease (CAD) and investigated the genetic relationship to CV andnon-CV diseases with reported CAD comorbidity. Methods: This study examined 425,196 UK Biobank participants to determine a genetic risk score (GRS) based on 300CAD associated variants (CAD-GRS). This score was associated with 22 traits, including risk factors, diseases secondary toCAD, as well as comorbid and non-CV conditions. Sensitivity analyses were performed in individuals free from CAD orstable angina diagnosis. Results: Hypercholesterolemia (odds ratio [OR]: 1.27; 95% CI: 1.26 to 1.29) and hypertension (OR: 1.11; 95% CI: 1.10 to1.12) were strongly associated with the CAD-GRS, which indicated that the score contained variants predisposing to theseconditions. However, the CAD-GRS was also significant in patients with CAD who were free of CAD risk factors (OR: 1.37;95% CI: 1.30 to 1.44). The study observed significant associations between the CAD-GRS and peripheral arterial disease(OR: 1.28; 95% CI: 1.23 to 1.32), abdominal aortic aneurysms (OR: 1.28; 95% CI: 1.20 to 1.37), and stroke (OR: 1.08;95% CI: 1.05 to 1.10), which remained significant in sensitivity analyses that suggested shared genetic predisposition. Thescore was also associated with heart failure (OR: 1.25; 95% CI: 1.22 to 1.29), atrialfibrillation (OR: 1.08; 95% CI: 1.05 to1.10), and premature death (OR: 1.04; 95% CI: 1.02 to 1.06). These associations were abolished in sensitivity analysesthat indicated that they were secondary to prevalent CAD. Finally, an inverse association was observed between the scoreand migraine headaches (OR: 0.94; 95% CI: 0.93 to 0.96). Conclusions: A wide spectrum of CV conditions, including premature death, might develop consecutively or inparallel with CAD for the same genetic roots. In conditions like heart failure, the study found evidence that theCAD-GRS could be used to stratify patients with no or limited genetic overlap with CAD risk. Increased geneticpredisposition to CAD was inversely associated with migraine headaches.

Background: Approximately 7% of American adults have severe hypercholesterolemia (untreated low-density lipoprotein [LDL] cholesterol ≥190 mg/dl), which may be due to familial hypercholeste...

Coronary artery disease (CAD) has substantial heritability and a polygenic architecture. However, the potential of genomic risk scores to help predict CAD outcomes has not been evaluated comprehensively, because available studies have involved limited genomic scope and limited sample sizes.This study sought to construct a genomic risk score for CAD and to estimate its potential as a screening tool for primary prevention.Using a meta-analytic approach to combine large-scale, genome-wide, and targeted genetic association data, we developed a new genomic risk score for CAD (metaGRS) consisting of 1.7 million genetic variants. We externally tested metaGRS, both by itself and in combination with available data on conventional risk factors, in 22,242 CAD cases and 460,387 noncases from the UK Biobank.The hazard ratio (HR) for CAD was 1.71 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.68 to 1.73) per SD increase in metaGRS, an association larger than any other externally tested genetic risk score previously published. The metaGRS stratified individuals into significantly different life course trajectories of CAD risk, with those in the top 20% of metaGRS distribution having an HR of 4.17 (95% CI: 3.97 to 4.38) compared with those in the bottom 20%. The corresponding HR was 2.83 (95% CI: 2.61 to 3.07) among individuals on lipid-lowering or antihypertensive medications. The metaGRS had a higher C-index (C = 0.623; 95% CI: 0.615 to 0.631) for incident CAD than any of 6 conventional factors (smoking, diabetes, hypertension, body mass index, self-reported high cholesterol, and family history). For men in the top 20% of metaGRS with2 conventional factors, 10% cumulative risk of CAD was reached by 48 years of age.The genomic score developed and evaluated here substantially advances the concept of using genomic information to stratify individuals with different trajectories of CAD risk and highlights the potential for genomic screening in early life to complement conventional risk prediction.

Background Familial combined hypolipidemia, a Mendelian condition characterized by substantial reductions in all 3 major lipid fractions, is caused by mutations that inactivate the gene angiopoietin-like 3 (ANGPTL3). Whether ANGPTL3 deficiency reduces risk of coronary artery disease (CAD) is unknown. Objectives The study goal was to leverage 3 distinct lines of evidence—a family that included individuals with complete (compound heterozygote) ANGPTL3 deficiency, a population based-study of humans with partial (heterozygote) ANGPTL3 deficiency, and biomarker levels in patients with myocardial infarction (MI)—to test whether ANGPTL3 deficiency is associated with lower risk for CAD. Methods We assessed coronary atherosclerotic burden in 3 individuals with complete ANGPTL3 deficiency and 3 wild-type first-degree relatives using computed tomography angiography. In the population, ANGPTL3 loss-of-function (LOF) mutations were ascertained in up to 21,980 people with CAD and 158,200 control subjects. LOF mutations were defined as nonsense, frameshift, and splice-site variants, along with missense variants resulting in

Objectives This study sought to identify loci for coronary artery calcification (CAC) in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD). Background CKD is associated with increased CAC and subsequent coronary heart disease (CHD), but the mechanisms remain poorly defined. Genetic studies of CAC in CKD may provide a useful strategy for identifying novel pathways in CHD. Methods We performed a candidate gene study (∼2,100 genes; ∼50,000 single nucleotide polymorphisms [SNPs]) of CAC within the CRIC (Chronic Renal Insufficiency Cohort) study (N = 1,509; 57% European, 43% African ancestry). SNPs with preliminary evidence of association with CAC in CRIC were examined for association with CAC in the PennCAC (Penn Coronary Artery Calcification) (N = 2,560) and AFCS (Amish Family Calcification Study) (N = 784) samples. SNPs with suggestive replication were further analyzed for association with myocardial infarction (MI) in the PROMIS (Pakistan Risk of Myocardial Infarction Study) (N = 14,885). Results Of 268 SNPs reaching p −4 for CAC in CRIC, 28 SNPs in 23 loci had nominal support (p chr9p21 and COL4A1 , known loci for CHD, these included SNPs having reported genome-wide association study association with hypertension (e.g., ATP2B1 ). In PROMIS, 4 of the 23 suggestive CAC loci ( chr9p21 , COL4A1 , ATP2B1 , and ABCA4 ) had significant associations with MI, consistent with their direction of effect on CAC. Conclusions We identified several loci associated with CAC in CKD that also relate to MI in a general population sample. CKD imparts a high risk of CHD and may provide a useful setting for discovery of novel CHD genes and pathways.

Objectives The purpose of this study was to assess the association of apolipoprotein(a) (apo[a]) isoforms with cardiovascular disease risk. Background Although circulating lipoprotein(a) (Lp[a]) is likely to be a causal risk factor in coronary heart disease (CHD), the magnitude of this association is modest. Lipoprotein(a) particles with smaller, rather than larger, apo(a) isoforms may be stronger risk factors. Methods Information was collated from 40 studies published between January 1970 and June 2009 that reported on associations between apo(a) isoforms and risk of CHD or ischemic stroke (involving a total of 11,396 patients and 46,938 controls). Results Thirty-six studies used broadly comparable phenotyping and analytic methods to assess apo(a) isoform size. These studies yielded a combined relative risk for CHD of 2.08 (95% confidence intervals [CI]: 1.67 to 2.58) for individuals with smaller versus larger apo(a) isoforms (corresponding approximately to 22 or fewer kringle IV type 2 repeats vs. >22 repeats or analogously an apo[a] molecular weight of Conclusions People with smaller apo(a) isoforms have an approximately 2-fold higher risk of CHD or ischemic stroke than those with larger proteins. Further studies are needed to determine whether the impact of smaller apo(a) isoforms is independent from Lp(a) concentration and other risk factors.

Objectives: This study sought to better determine the link between leptin and coronary heart disease (CHD).Background: Circulating leptin is considered a risk factor for CHD but larger studies are ...

This study sought to better determine the link between leptin and coronary heart disease (CHD).Circulating leptin is considered a risk factor for CHD but larger studies are needed.Leptin levels were measured in 550 men with fatal CHD or nonfatal myocardial infarction and in 1,184 controls nested within a prospective study of 5,661 British men and set in context with a meta-analysis.Baseline leptin correlated with body mass index (BMI), blood pressure, total cholesterol, triglyceride, and inflammatory markers; correlations persisted after BMI adjustment. The within-person consistency of leptin values over 4 years (correlation coefficient: 0.79; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.73 to 0.83) was higher than those of some established cardiovascular risk factors. In a comparison of individuals in the top third with those in the bottom third of baseline leptin, the age- and town-adjusted odds ratio for CHD was 1.25 (95% CI: 0.96 to 1.62), decreasing to 0.98 (95% CI: 0.72 to 1.34) after adjustment for BMI. A systematic review identified 7 prospective reports with heterogeneous findings (I(2) = 60%, 13% to 82%). The combined adjusted risk ratio across all studies was 1.44 (95% CI: 0.95 to 2.16) in a comparison of extreme thirds of leptin levels. The inconsistency between studies was partially explained by sample size, with combined estimates from studies involving100 CHD cases (1.28, 95% CI: 0.80 to 2.04) being somewhat weaker than those from smaller studies (1.81, 95% CI: 0.76 to 4.31).Previous studies appear to have overestimated associations of leptin and CHD risk. Our results suggest a moderate association that is largely dependent on BMI.