Contribution of the OLR1 gene to the development of cardiovascular diseases

Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) are the leading cause of death in the world. Studies on the molecular genetic mechanisms aimed at detecting pathogenetically significant molecular targets, as well as searching for informative biomarkers remain relevant. Some of these predictive/prognostic marker candidates are the OLR1 gene products and polymorphisms. The OLR1 gene encodes the lectin-like oxidized low-density lipoprotein receptor-1 (LOX-1), the expression of which increases in response to proinflammatory or proatherogenic factors. LOX-1 plays an important pathogenetic role in the development of CVD and type 2 diabetes. Single nucleotide polymorphisms in the OLR1 gene can be used as a genetic biomarker predicting the CVDs, necessary for stratification of patients into risk groups within the concept of personalized medicine, as well as potential therapeutic targets for patients with certain clinical phenotypes. This review examines the main genetic and epidemiological studies of the OLR1 gene association with CVDs and the etiopathogenetic mechanisms of the OLR1 gene influence on their development.