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Disease susceptibility and responsiveness to treatment vary among individuals. To understand this diversity, it is crucial to investigate clinical materials and information from large sets of individuals, such as data that can be obtained from biobanks. BioBank Japan is one of the largest biobanks in East Asia and has a complementary role to biobanks from other populations, such as the UK Biobank, given the presence of diverse ethnic variations.
The US FDA recently approved mavacamten, a first-in-class myosin modulator, for obstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. By targeting actin mechanobiology, myosin modulators are emerging as important medicines in cardiology.
Studies over the past five years showing megakaryocytes in tissues beyond the bone marrow have led scientists to question the definition and purpose of these cells beyond platelet production. Here, we look to evolutionary biology to understand the roles of megakaryocytes in platelet function and diversity and mammalian fitness.
Recognition of mechanistic similarities and the interconnection between cardiovascular disease and cancer in recent years offers an opportunity to think more creatively about therapeutic development. Targeting shared pathways, either through drug repurposing or novel compounds, holds the promise of addressing both afflictions at the same time.
Fibrosis is a common sequela of cardiovascular disease that results in structural and functional changes. Targeting the subsets of pathogenic cardiac fibroblasts may be an attractive option for reducing morbidity that is associated with heart disease, but the timing, specificity and extent to which fibroblast-targeting therapies might be used is still debated.
After three decades of work, hypothesis-generating genomic approaches have led to the identification of several intracranial aneurysm risk loci and Mendelian mutations, involving several unexpected genes. These findings opened the door for exciting opportunities, unraveling the genomic architecture of brain aneurysms. The field is now ripe to face the next set of surprises in this long journey.