Blood-vessel muscle genes that change plaque stability and heart disease risk
Identification of smooth muscle cell genes causal in atherosclerotic plaque stability and cardiovascular disease risk
Researchers will combine mouse experiments and large human genetic and tissue datasets to find vessel-muscle genes that make artery plaques more or less likely to cause heart attacks for people at risk of coronary artery disease.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Columbia University Health Sciences NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (New York, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11131096 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
From my point of view, scientists are tracing how vascular smooth muscle cells change in mouse arteries and matching those patterns to human plaque tissue and genetic data. They will use tissue from a large vascular biobank plus genomic data from over a million people, including a very large Pakistani genomics resource, to find gene variants tied to unstable plaques. The team will exclude effects driven by cholesterol genes so they can focus on vessel-muscle biology, then use rare-variant and gene-burden tests to nominate causal genes. If certain genes are found, those could point to new ways to stabilize plaques or predict who is at higher risk.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: People with coronary artery disease or who are at high risk for a heart attack, and those willing to provide genetic data or plaque tissue through participating centers, would be the best candidates to be involved or to benefit later.
Not a fit: People without atherosclerosis or those expecting immediate treatment changes are unlikely to get direct benefit from this research right away.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could point to new drug targets or tests that help prevent heart attacks by stabilizing artery plaques.
How similar studies have performed: Previous studies have shown some smooth muscle genes affect plaque behavior, but combining mouse lineage tracing with million-person genomic and large plaque-tissue datasets at this scale is novel.
Where this research is happening
New York, United States
- Columbia University Health Sciences — New York, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Reilly, Muredach P — Columbia University Health Sciences
- Study coordinator: Reilly, Muredach P
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.