Higher Incidence of Gene Mutation in African Americans May Help Protect Against High Cholesterol Levels

Researchers at University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas have two found fairly common gene mutations in individuals of African descent that are associated with significantly lower their LDL cholesterol (the “bad” cholesterol) levels. Previous research indicated that certain mutations in the gene, PCSK9, caused individuals to have higher cholesterol levels, particularly LDL levels. Dr. Jonathan Cohen and his colleagues analyzed the sequence of the PCSK9 gene in individuals who had low LDL levels. It was noted that two possible mutations in the PCSK9 gene were identified, resulting in lower LDL cholesterol levels. Of the patients with the PCSK9 gene analyzed in this research study, about 2% of the individuals were African American and less than 0.1% were European American. Read more about this new research finding.