This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Request Permissions Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Barth, A. S. Articles by Hare, J. M. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Barth, A. S. Articles by Hare, J. M. Related Collections Related Article

(Circulation Research. 2006;98:1459.)
© 2006 American Heart Association, Inc.

Editorials

The Potential for the Transcriptome to Serve as a Clinical Biomarker for Cardiovascular Diseases

Andreas S. Barth, Joshua M. Hare

From the Division of Cardiology, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Md.

Correspondence to Joshua M. Hare, MD, The Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions, Cardiology Division and Institute for Cell Engineering, 733 North Broadway, Broadway Research Building, Suite 651, Baltimore, MD 21205. E-mail jhare@mail.jhmi.edu

See related article, pages e74–e83

Key Words: gene expression • functional genomics • classification • heart transplantation

An extract of the first 250 words of the full text is provided, because this article has no abstract.

	Introduction

 
The ability to measure the level of expression of tens of thousands of genes simultaneously with a variety of technologies has introduced the concept of deriving molecular signatures based on specific patterns of gene expression. This notion is conceptually resonant with regard to oncogenesis, and coupled with the ready availability of tumor tissue, has led to the introduction of molecular signature–based biomarkers for several solid and hematologic tumors.^1,2 Recently, molecular signature analysis (MSA), prospectively validated in large patient cohorts, has become available to physicians managing patients with breast cancer,³ and ongoing clinical trials suggest that MSA could be a valuable tool to predict diagnosis, prognosis, and individual responses to therapies.

The promising results of microarray technology in oncology raise the issue of whether and how this tool could be used in other areas. In the cardiovascular field, there is a need for improved tools to detect inflammatory diseases of the myocardium and to guide immunosuppressive treatment in cardiac allograft recipients. The current gold standard for detecting myocarditis or monitoring cardiac allograft rejection—histopathological examination of endomyocardial biopsy specimens—is limited by imperfect sensitivity⁴ and requires, in the case of transplant recipients, repeated invasive procedures. The availability of high-throughput genomic technology could contribute substantially to the management of inflammatory diseases of the myocardium.

From a conceptual basis, genetic susceptibility does play in role in these disorders. For example, various single nucleotide polymorphisms correlate with cardiac transplant outcomes.^5,6 Therefore, the advent of high-throughput genotyping holds great promise to assess one patient’s individual risk for . . . [Full Text of this Article]

Related Article:

Molecular Profiling Improves Diagnoses of Rejection and Infection in Transplanted Organs

Andrey Morgun, Natalia Shulzhenko, Ainhoa Perez-Diez, Rosiane V.Z. Diniz, Gerdine F. Sanson, Dirceu R. Almeida, Polly Matzinger, and Maria Gerbase-DeLima
Circ. Res. 2006 98: e74-e83. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

This article has been cited by other articles:

				O. Campuzano and R. Brugada Genetics of familial atrial fibrillation Europace, October 1, 2009; 11(10): 1267 - 1271. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				B. Heidecker, E. K. Kasper, I. S. Wittstein, H. C. Champion, E. Breton, S. D. Russell, M. M. Kittleson, K. L. Baughman, and J. M. Hare Transcriptomic Biomarkers for Individual Risk Assessment in New-Onset Heart Failure Circulation, July 15, 2008; 118(3): 238 - 246. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]