New study reveals why people of African descent suffer more from strokes
A team of international scientists from the UVA Health Medical Center recently conducted the largest analysis of stroke-risk genes ever undertaken in individuals of African descent.
By TOBIAS SIEGALAN AFRICAN migrant sits on the street in Tel Aviv, earlier 2018(photo credit: AMIR COHEN/REUTERS)
New research conducted by the UVA Health Medical Center in Virginia exposed for the first time the generic variants that explain why people of African descent have an increased risk of dying from strokes.Little research had previously been done regarding the genetic factors that contribute to the elevated risk of strokes that people from African descent face, or the reasons that cause the higher risk compared to other ethnicities. However, the team of international scientists from the UVA Health Medical Center recently conducted the largest analysis of stroke-risk genes ever undertaken in individuals of African descent.Examining the genomes (an organism's complete set of DNA, including all of its genes) of over 22,000 people of African ancestry, the new study managed to identify important genetic factors that contribute to stroke risk. These groundbreaking findings may help doctors better understand the genes that are involved in causing higher risk strokes, identify and treat those at high risk and possibly prevent the condition altogether in the future.“Given the undue burden that people of African ancestry endure from stroke and other cerebrovascular disease, the lack of investigation of risk factors in this group has been a substantial gap,” said researcher Bradford B. Worrall, MD, a neurologist at UVA Health. “Our work is an important step toward filling that gap, albeit with much more work to be done. These findings will provide greater insight into ethnic-specific and global risk factors to reduce the second leading cause of death worldwide.”Stroke is the leading cause of adult disability in the United States, but strokes strike African-Americans more often and at younger ages than people of European descent. Moreover, African-Americans who survive strokes often face greater disability afterwards.Family history is a major risk factor for strokes, which suggests that our genome plays a significant role in increasing or decreasing the risk. But most genetic stroke studies, until now, have primarily focused on people of European descent, and their results have not always been compatible with cases involving African-Americans.The researchers revisited previous studies to identify genetic risk factors specific to people of African descent. In total, 3,734 people who had suffered strokes and more than 18,000 who had not, were examined by researchers, who eventually discovered that a common variation near the HNF1A gene was strongly associated with increased risk in those of African ancestry.While that variant had the strongest link to stroke risk, the researchers identified 29 other variants that also appear likely to influence stroke risk.“Studies of this nature are critical given the paucity of genetic studies focused on people of African descent and other minority populations and the substantial health disparities related to stroke in these groups,” said Keith Keene, PhD, a former UVA Health researcher. “Furthermore, we increasingly recognize the power of looking at genetic risk factors across different race ethnic groups, known as transethnic analyses, for unlocking the underlying biology of diseases like stroke. If we understand the biology, we can develop new treatment and prevention strategies.”
