Genetic link to higher heart disease risk in women identified

Researchers have identified a gene that has been linked to an elevated risk of heart disease in women.

An international research team, led by University College London, assessed a group of genes that had previously been linked to an increased risk of artery disease, looking at genetic, arterial thickness and artery health data from nearly 4,000 European men and women.

They discovered that the gene BCAR1, which is involved in many processes in the body that are affected by the female sex hormone oestrogen, was associated with an increased risk of a heart attack or stroke in women, but not in men.

A high risk version of the BCAR1 gene, called the GG version, was shown to be linked with a higher chance of cardiovascular ill health when combined with women's naturally occurring high oestrogen levels.

Dr Shannon Amoils, senior research adviser at the British Heart Foundation, said: "We know that women have a lower overall risk of coronary heart disease compared with men but as this study shows, women do get coronary heart disease, and it is important to find out more."