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DNA variant puts Caucasians at higher risk for heart disease

CAROLYN ABRAHAM

Globe and Mail Update

Latest comment posted at 4:29 PM EDT 04/05/07

Researchers discover heart risk linked to a huge chunk of DNA held up regardless of whether other well-known signs of susceptibility were present ...Read the full article

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  1. Doc Holliday from Toronto, Canada writes: This is very nice work on huge sets of data! This is the direction scientific research is heading.

    The article mentioned genes such as CDKN2A and CDKN2B, which 'are known to be involved in cell growth and cell death'. Yes, and involved in some cancers, too. I wonder how much their research overlaps with stem cell research, and what possibilities lie ahead for this group!
  2. Global Citizen from Canada writes:
    'scientists found that 50 per cent of Caucasians carried one copy of an altered stretch of chromosome 9, and as a result, their risk of developing heart disease rose by 15 to 20 per cent. A quarter of Caucasians carried two copies and faced an increased risk of as much as 40 per cent.'

    Did I read it wrong? I think this meant 50 25=75% have one or two copies of the genes. The title should have read 75% then!

    The question is why these genes get passed down, there must be some evolutionary advatages for it to propogate besides these diseases identified.
  3. Just the Truth from Canada writes: Oh, NO !

    More big words and such like from them thar fancy-schmancy, sissy-pants socialistical 'scientists'.

    Don't believe 'em. Instead, watch Faux News.
  4. bill williams from whitehorse.yukon, Canada writes: A racisist health risk if i ever heard one.whites only,can't wait to hear if any other color wants this.
  5. Winston Smith from Brampton, Canada writes: What's going on? I thought that race was merly a 'social construct' and made no real difference. But if different races are at different risks for heart disease does this mean that there are other differences as well? Maybe the races have different mean IQs or crime rates?

    This study prompts too many questions and should be declared 'hate speech' for the sake of social harmony and the delicate sensibilities of politically correct individuals.
  6. Prashanta Dhakal from Canada writes: Winston Smith,

    Why do you feel the need to bring that up? Are you suggesting that different races have different IQs or are involved in crime in varying rates? Just say so if you think so.

    Studies have been done on this matter. You are not the first person to think this way, obviously. But the result has been inconclusive so far. Establishing a cause and effect relationship is very difficult using statistics because so many factors play a role. In matters as complicated as this, it is always possible that certain important factors have not been taken into account.

    I am certain that the smartest 5% of people from any race are smarter than the average person from any other race. So that would suggest that there is not a 'smart gene' exclusively with one race. Therefore, it is probably not worth the scientists' time to study patterns of race and intelligence. The differences are the same as that between you and your smart cousin. If you think society should treat you differently than your cousin then continue on exploring the topic of race and intelligence.
  7. Andrew MacGillivray from Victoria, writes: Antidote is; lots of sex, red wine, flax seed oil or olive oil, omega rich fishy diet, tukey, chicken etc. and a healthy sense of spirituality (not religion). Zen Buddhism is worth a look. And don't forget exercise - you gotta move !
  8. C. H. Oakley from Canada writes: Abstinence, beer, palm oil, fishsticks, pork, atheism, and laziness.
  9. vic w from Port Dover, Canada writes: Prashanta: very well said.

    Just the Truth: When a society stops listening to it's scientists, civilization is over and the guy who beats his chest and hoots the loudest is the one who sits over the ruins that he's created.
  10. S. A. Forrest from Ontario, Canada writes: Just wanted to dispel some myths which are likely to arise or have already arisen from the figures cited here.

    First, just because figures were only cited for white people, one should not assume that this gene is utterly absent from people of different ethnicities -- it may merely be present in different quantities, and the only study group available was people of European descent.

    Second, the scientists who say 'race is a social construct' are not arguing that all humans are equally related. I can guess with reasonable confidence whether someone's ancestry is, say, Irish, and be right more often than not. But the notion of 'race' usually cordons people into tight categories with thick lines between them. Sure, there are white people, and black people, but there are also people like Barack Obama. And the whole 'race is a social construct' bit comes in when society labels someone like Obama, who is an equal mix of both ethnicities, as 'black'.

    Third, to the person who argued that this change must be beneficial: perhaps, perhaps not. The thing to note is that many of us modern humans come from very small starting populations tens or hundreds of thousands of years ago. So small deleterious changes might persist just because of genetic drift. This is particularly likely for things like heart disease, which usually crop up only in later life. If you drop dead at age 85, what impact does it have on propagating your genes? If you were going to have any kids, you had them already.
  11. Dennis sinneD. from Calgary, Canada writes: Winston Smith from Brampton brings up an excellent question. How can races have one genetic difference without another? Oh, what a sticky concept to consider... Or, we can celebrate our differences, like Canadians are supposed to (ya!). Also, I'd like to add vitamin C to the beer, wine, sex, etc. list above.
  12. Michael Soft from Moon, Canada writes: People: Have you ever heard of 'The Bell Curve'?
  13. T B from Canada writes: The fact is, we know that there are genetic differences between races. We just can't produce research detailing it. It is off limits. In many cases, when we take blood samples, we can't even label the race of individuals becuase it could produce results that would be uncomfortable.

    Social science is a disease, and is detrimental to our understanding human life. That doesn't mean the Bell Curve is correct or even worthy of any more study (social science is a disease). Intelligence is to some extent genitic, but one race is not de facto more intelligent. But some may value education more than others.
  14. Brian Lowry from Fredericton, Canada writes: All of this genetic research will eventually lead somewhere, but right now this is analogous to a linguistic discovery that books containing the word 'the' tend to be in English, and that periods appear to increase in frequency when 'The' is capitalized nearby. On the plus side, any evidence of inferiority of Caucasians is surely good for the collective human soul.
  15. keith stringer from Cincinnati, United States writes: Brian Lowry, that is one weirdly inappropriate and nauseatingly xeno-combative comment you ended with. Would you care to comment on what is posted on WebMD based on epidemiology, which is: 'African Americans, American Indians, and Mexican Americans are more likely to have heart disease than Caucasians'? Rather than brandishing about your sickening word of 'inferiority' against one so-called race, as you do, why not celebrate scientific discovery and, as many posts have wisely done, recommend that others aim for a lifestyle that maximizes their own health in the setting of whatever particular genetic background they possess?
  16. Michele K from Ottawa, Canada writes: If it were only that simple, Andrew McGillvray! I'm no fool - I do all that you suggest, and take a daily aspirin to boot, but lifestyle cannot overcome genetics.

    I don't profess to have any expertise in the field (although what with my families' [both sides] history of heart disease [I'm thinking chances are good that I've got 2X that genetic factor just identified], I keep as up-to-date as any layperson can), but I recall reading that genetic predisposition more than anything else - even smoking - puts you at 3 times the risk than persons without it, and that even the healthiest of persons cannot undue their genetic propensity - at least, not yet.

    Heart disease is still our #1 killer, so I'm glad to see research advances like this one.
  17. J C from NYC, United States writes: Shouldn't caucasians play the race card and sue DNA for discrimination?
  18. C M from Toronto, Canada writes: I'm doomed...
  19. The Observer from Canada writes: Strange article indeed. There are indeed differences between races with regards to heart disease. It should be noted however, that the Centre for Disease Control actually lists being African-American as being a risk factor for heart disease. Perhaps they can add caucasion to that. Maybe soon they will find a gene that puts Asians at a higher risk for having heart disease. Then we can say people of African, European or Asian descent may be at risk of developing heart disease. Perhaps you can see where this is going. Must be a slow news day.
  20. Ed Wilson from Canada writes: I'm glad I'm reading this on the web so I'm not wasting printer's ink......
  21. Garry C from Toronto, Canada writes: This IS news....when wealthy white people consume a diet high in fat and animal products with virtually no fresh fruits and vegetables all while leading a sedentary lifestyle.

    It's in your 'jeans'.
  22. otmar zambo from Canada writes: thats because they work too hard for themselves and for everyone else!
    Probably including the guy from whitehorse
  23. No Kidding from Toronto, Canada writes: I can't wait until they find an IQ gene and compare the races.
  24. Jim R from Toronto, Canada writes: Delving a bit further into this, its gratifying to know that two very large, expensive and independent genetic association studies zeroed in on the same small chromosomal region. The problem with many of previous genome association studies has been that they rarely been replicated in other populations. These guys clearly did it right (using different approaches including HapMap) and it augers well for other studies. What's not so great is the high frequency of the variant and the fact that the differences are not actually associated with a particular gene but with so-called junk DNA. Clearly, this is no junk but it does mean that there's a lot more work to do and indicates that regulation of gene function is likely influenced by as yet unknown mechanisms. Given the significance of two groups finding this same region, the follow-up studies will be the ones to watch (are there any changes in CDK expression, etc).

    The predictions are that we will be able to sequence an entire genome for a couple of thousand bucks in the next decade. GATTACA here we come.....
  25. El Kabong from Average, United States writes: If you said that against blacks or orientals, (or, dare I say it, homothechsuals), you'd be branded a racist.
    But hey, it's against whites, so who cares?
  26. Pat Gesner from Canada writes: S. A. Forrest, 'race is a social construct' - in Brazil, Barack Obama, would be considered white. Came across a North Americans account of their strange 'cultural shock' - a lot of confusion when someone refered to as 'white' was way darker than someone refered to as 'black'. Its seems social status definately coloures the choice of terms more than the persons skin tone.
  27. Pat Gesner from Canada writes: Caucasians- why automaticly decide they are 'white'? Depending on the use of the term, as in spliting mankind into 3 racial groups-african, caucasian and mongolian, you will have very brown skinned people like Arabs and Parkistanis lumped as Caucasian.
  28. jensen allsop from Mexico City, Mexico writes: I actually lived in Brazil and I just wanted to contradict the commonly held belief outside Brazil that a person who is visibly mixed such as Obama would be considered white. People who look mixed in Brazil are usually called 'pardos' or sometimes 'morenos' but I have never heard someone who looks like Obama referred to as white, no matter how successful they may be. The difference between Brazil and Anglo society is that if you look white, even if you have mixed blood, you are still considered white. The idea of passing doesn't exist, if you look white you are white in Brazil. This is different than saying a person who is visually mixed is white.
  29. Pat Gesner from Canada writes: People with India Indian heritage have a very high heart disease problem, sufficent that any knowleagble Canadian doctor will have those of that heritage undergoing certain screening tests for heart problems more routinely. When it comes to 'herbal' medicine, I've always been curious if the curries most indians eat have an effect on their heart disease risks. Tumeric which gives curry its yellow colour is supposed to be very healthy - would constant consumption give Indians protection ? Help like that of low and continuious doses of Asprin ? Seems to me that given the number of Indian immigrants some good studies could be made. Ones like the ones tracing japanese/oriental women who do and do not switch to a North American diet. Was that not a source for the diet/overweight/ gall bladder link in women from over 30 years back? Lots and lots to find out yet ! (definely more fun than arguments about Gods - umteen thousand years and yet NO proof. Still there are those who have a fit over things like not being allowed cover their heads! And on top of it all, they do not want to be ridiculed for their superstitions!) Science has its weirdities- One day doubtless someone will write a hilariously funny satire over doctors denying the 'infectious' nature of stomach ulcers. And our grand children will have a chuckle over how bone headed we are. Just like their grandchildren will about them, etc.
  30. Pat Gesner from Canada writes: jensen allsop, That is intresting but what you say does NOT explain the comment I had come across. Of course it could be a case of someone leg been pulled, as in Margret Mead's comming of age anthropology. If so, I stand corrected by you. But I must say if it was a joke, it certainly has backfired with the world labeling them as weird. Very nice of you to correct, jensen allsop- but if you think it is a common mistake, I suspect you will have to repeat yourself endlessly. I have nothing but contemp for those who think such in- jokes will not harm reputations of those who honestly, in amazement and wonder, spread word of their experiences. You may feel similar comtempt of Brazilians who spread such jokes by the 1000 th time you patiently explain that Brazilian society is just not so. Good luck- some 'jokes' take forever to fade.
  31. Irene Cornwell from Morinville, Canada writes: This should prove of great interest to insurance companies or even potential employers. Or, could employess of medical facilities be induced to 'sell' test results to interested interests?
    Our technical abilities in the health field always open up such interesting and important ethical questions.I hope someone is working on them
    An interesting aspect of race emphasis. In the early 1960's I was one of the few whites working in a Seattle County hospital. My co-workers went every month on their lunch hour to receive free contraceptive pills from a clinic doing 'research'. We would joke about my not being indluded.
    Until, several of these co-workers suffered kidney damage, and blood pressure problems. A neighbor I scarcely knew laid down on her chesterfield and died of a blood clot to the brain. Everyone wondered why? I think I might know.
    I certainly hope the heart medicine is a truly honest trail.
  32. Dr. Gonzo from Canada writes: Radcliffe Robinson, please keep your god out of this. It is an article concerning science. Your religion has no place here.

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