Abstract
Gene Expression Analysis of Cardiovascular Diseases: Novel Insights to Biology and Clinical Applications
David Seo, Geoffrey S. Ginsburg, Pascal J. Goldschmidt-Clermont
Microarray technology gives researchers the ability to survey the expression levels of thousands of genes simultaneously and is a powerful tool for studying complex cardiovascular diseases. This paper reviews current efforts using gene expression analysis for cardiovascular research and the implications for clinical practice.
Although the contribution of genetics to complex cardiovascular diseases such as atherosclerosis has been accepted for quite some time, full and detailed knowledge of the individual causative genes has been elusive. With the advent of genomic technologies and methods, the necessary tools are now available to begin pinpointing the genes that contribute to disease susceptibility and progression. One approach being applied extensively in candidate gene discovery is gene expression analysis of human and animal tissues using microarrays. The genes identified by these genomic studies provide valuable insight into disease biology and represent the initial steps toward the development of diagnostic tests and therapeutic strategies that will substantially improve human health. This paper highlights the progress that has been made in using gene expression analysis cardiovascular genomic research and the potential for applying these findings in clinical medicine.
