In the Heart Research Institute (HRI) Atherosclerosis and Vascular Remodelling Group, PhD student Alexander Lin and his supervisor Dr Ashish Misra have published a paper on how cardiovascular diseases are linked to clonal expansion in JACC: Basic to Translational Science.
This review was conducted in collaboration with world leaders in atherosclerosis research, including Profs Andrew Baker (University of Edinburgh, UK), Edward Fisher (New York University, USA) and Stefanie Dimmeler (Goethe University Frankfurt, Germany), with Alexander Lin as first author.
Atherosclerosis, the main underlying cause of cardiovascular disease (CVD), is the process in which plaques that are made up of fat, cholesterol, calcium and other substances build up in the walls of arteries. It is most serious when it occurs in arteries to the heart or to the brain, as this can lead to heart attack or stroke.
During atherosclerosis and other CVDs, cells within the blood vessels undergo a phenomenon known as clonal expansion, whereby a select few cells disproportionately respond during disease.
