Copyright © 2005, European Society of Cardiology
Susceptibility genes and modifiers for cardiac arrhythmias
aDepartment of Medicine, Cardiology, Hospital of the Ludwig-Maximilians University, Munich, Germany
bDepartment of Cardiology and Angiology, Hospital of the University of Münster, Germany
cInstitute for Arteriosclerosis Research at the University of Münster, Department Molecular Cardiology, Münster, Germany
dIZKF (Interdisciplinary Center for Clinical Research) of the University of Münster, Germany
* Corresponding author. Molekular-Kardiologie, Institut für Arterioskleroseforschung an der Universität Münster, Domagkstr. 3, D-48149 Münster, Germany. Tel.: +49 251 83 52982; fax: +49 251 83 52980. Email address: heart{at}uni-muenster.de
The last decade has seen a dramatic increase in the understanding of the molecular basis of arrhythmias. Much of this new information has been driven by genetic studies that focused on rare, monogenic arrhythmia syndromes that were accompanied or followed by cellular electrophysiological or biochemical studies. The marked clinical heterogeneity known from these familial arrhythmia syndromes has led to the development of a multifactorial ("multi-hit") concept of arrhythmogenesis in which causal gene mutations have a major effect on disease expression that is further modified by other factors such as age, gender, sympathetic tone, and environmental triggers. Systematic genetic studies have unraveled an unexpected DNA sequence variance in these arrhythmia genes that has ethnic-specific patterns. Whether this genetic variance may contribute as a second genetic modifier for arrhythmia development is under current investigation. The aim of this article is to review common genetic variation in ion channel genes and to compare these recent findings.
KEYWORDS Genetics; Arrhythmias; Susceptibility; Ion channels; Polymorphisms
Time for primary review 17 days
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