EVALUATING EVIDENCE IN SUPPORT OF MULTIPLE GENETIC LINKS TO CORONARY ARTERY DISEASE

Abstract

Coronary artery disease (CAD) is an incredibly common and severe cardiac condition that affects people all across the world. It is a condition that requires careful monitoring, and can quickly become life threatening if left untreated. Coronary artery disease has the ability to affect a patient's eligibility for cardiac clinical trials, and can make them ineligible to participate in novel life saving procedures. These procedures are oftentimes for conditions that historically have not had a potential treatment or cure, or only have treatment options that are very high risk to the patient population in question. Through the past few decades, research into CAD has expanded to explore potential genetic variants that can influence CAD pathogenesis. This review discusses the role of 9 different genes identified through GWAS studies, the molecular pathways that each gene is involved in, and evaluates the evidence that a mutation in one or more of these genes promotes CAD development. This information could allow for patients with a genetically increased susceptibility to CAD to be screened for their disease risk and monitored for premature CAD. Ideally, this would allow them to take preventative measures against CAD, or pursue necessary treatment before the disease progresses to a state of extreme severity.