Single letter in the human genome points to risk for high cholesterol

Tuesday, December 16, 2008 - 15:28 in Health & Medicine

(PhysOrg.com) -- Write out every letter in the human genome, one A, C, T or G per millimeter, and the text would be 1,800 miles long, roughly the distance from New York to Colorado. Now, in the search for genes that affect how humans synthesize, process and break down cholesterol, a consortium of researchers led by Rockefeller University scientists has found a single letter among this expanse of code that is associated with elevated LDL cholesterol levels, one of the leading health concerns that has come to dominate the 21st century.

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