Genetic predictors of cardiovascular disease: the use of chip technology.

Cardiovascular disease, a primary cause of mortality in the United States, has a complex pathologic process involving many genes. The high-throughput technology (microarray or "DNA chip") used to decipher the human genome is now being employed to identify key genes in its development. A study focusing on candidate genes associated with premature cardiovascular disease discovered that missense variations in the thrombospondin 1 and 4 genes were associated with premature coronary artery disease, while a mutation in the non-coding region of a thrombospondin 2 gene imparts protection from developing heart disease. Although the clinical implications of microarray technology are still under investigation, this research may lead to a diagnostic test to determine a patient's risk for developing heart disease.