Scientists have made a major advance in the battle to control blood pressure, it was announced last night.
Some 16 new gene regions linked to blood pressure have been identified – and another 12 confirmed in a research project involving 24 countries, 234 institutions, 351 scientists and more than 270,000 people.
Researchers said they hoped it would lead to new treatments and help identify how blood pressure problems are inherited.
The findings come as a major campaign to raise public awareness of the issue – Know Your Numbers Week! – is launched in the UK.
The findings were reported in the journals Nature and Nature Genetics by an international consortium.
Researcher Professor Mark Caulfield, of the Barts and The London Medical School, UK, said: "High blood pressure affects a quarter of the adult population in the UK.
"These new gene regions we report today offer a major leap forward in our understanding of the inherited influences on blood pressure and offer new potential avenues for treatment which is particularly welcome for those who do not achieve optimal blood pressure control."
Scientists at Leicester University, UK, and Imperial College, London, have also identified genes that may help explain the way blood pressure is measured through pulse pressure and mean arterial pressure.
Professor Peter Weissberg, medical director of the British Heart Foundation, welcomed the findings, but added: "Researchers from across the world have now identified some of the genes linked to blood pressure control, which could pave the way for new treatments in the future.
"But your genes are only one piece of the puzzle. You are less likely to have high blood pressure if you stick to a healthy diet, do plenty of exercise, and maintain a healthy weight."
Know Your Numbers! Week is aimed at encouraging people to get blood pressure readings – and take action if they are high.
Dr Ivan Browne, a public health consultant in Leicestershire, said: "If your blood pressure is normal, this is great news but if it’s high you need take action to bring it back to within the normal range.
"For some of us this may mean, losing some weight, eating more fruit and vegetables, taking regular exercise, eating less salt in your diet and for some people a doctor may need to prescribe treatment to help them to lower their blood pressure."
Genetic variants in novel pathways influence blood pressure and cardiovascular disease risk. Chakravarti et al. Nature September 11 doi 10.1038/nature10405;
Genome-wide association study identifies six new loci influencing pulse pressure and mean arterial pressure. Elliott et al. Nature Genetics, doi 10.1038/ng.922.
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