Sep 13(ABC): The FinnGen genomic study, which was led by the University of Helsinki, discovered a variant that is typical of the Finnish population that protects against heart diseases. Carriers of the variant have an approximately one-fifth lower chance of getting heart disease than the general population.
The newly identified variant’s defense against coronary heart disease is probably due to the carriers’ lower-than-average arterial stiffness.
The variant in question is found in the MFGE8 gene, which produces a protein called lactadherin. Lactadherin is known to affect the process of arterial stiffening. The results show that the variant inhibits the lactadherin protein’s ability to function. However, further research is required to confirm this.
The discovery was made possible by the FinnGen research dataset
Worldwide, cardiovascular diseases continue to be the leading cause of mortality. Cardiovascular diseases account for one-third of fatalities in Finland.
