Mutations of blood-creating genes correlated to heart diseases: study

BEIJING, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- Chinese scientists have identified a group of gene mutations that are correlated to an elevated risk of coronary heart disease (CHD), publishing their findings in the medical journal JAMA Cardiology.

In a cohort study of 6,181 Chinese individuals, the researchers from Fuwai Hospital under the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences found that the clonal hematopoiesis of indeterminate potential (CHIP) -- the presence of a kind of stem cell caused by leukemia-causing mutations -- was associated with a 42 percent increase in CHD risk in 1,100 CHIP carriers compared with those without CHIP.

The study, which was published online on Jan. 10, stated that the elevated CHD risk attributed to those mutations was not negligible.

The results will promote the early prediction of and personalized prevention and treatment of coronary heart disease, said the researchers.