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UCL Institute of Cardiovascular Science

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Genetic and Non-Genetic Determinants of Subsequent Coronary Heart Disease (GENIUS-CHD) Study Group

Leads
Dr Riyaz Patel, BHF Clinical Intermediate Fellow, UCL Consultant Cardiologist, Barts Health and UCLH NHS Trusts
Dr Folkert Asselbergs, Professor of Cardiovascular Genetics, University Medical Centre Utrecht & UCL Consultant Cardiologist, University Medical Centre Utrecht

Overview
Our current understanding of risk of subsequent CHD events, among those who have survived an initial event is limited.  This has hampered our ability to prognosticate and personalise secondary prevention treatment.  A greater understanding of the relevant clinical and molecular determinants of subsequent CHD risk could improve outcomes and also lead to novel drug target discovery, specific for this population. 

GENIUS-CHD represents an international collaboration of studies meeting three criteria: (1) recruited participants with established CHD (2) stored or processed biological samples and (3) performed prospective follow-up for subsequent events. A federated analysis approach with centrally developed scripts permits sharing of summary level output data with meta-analyses at 2 independent centres (UCL & Utrecht). 

The consortium currently consists of 52 studies, from 17 countries, who have collectively recruited 244,650, predominantly (93%), Caucasian participants of whom 199,299 meet all eligibility criteria for inclusion.  The majority of studies are prospective clinical cohorts, while some are nested case-cohorts and randomized clinical trials. 22 of the studies recruited individuals with acute coronary syndromes, 9 with stable coronary disease and 21 a combination of these. Enrolment into the studies took place between 1985 to present day with prospective follow up for subsequent events ranging from 7 months to 15 years. Participants are mostly male (56%-91%) with a mean age ranging from 40 to 75 years.

Ongoing studies are exploring the impact of selected genetic variants and non-genetic biomarkers on risk of subsequent CHD events, Genome Wide Association discovery studies as well as the impact of selection biases when studying survivors of an initial event.  The consortium is open to further studies joining the effort and anyone interested in learning more can contact either of the investigators listed above.

Highlights