Study confirms gene's link to stroke

SAN DIEGO, Sept. 27 (UPI) -- U.S. researchers have confirmed an association between a specific gene and stroke in young adults.

The findings in a biracial group of young women in the United States matched those found by a study in Iceland. The Icelandic study and subsequent ones tended to look at older people of European descent.

Researchers led by Dr. John Cole of the University of Maryland Medical School confirmed that phosphodiesterase 4D, or PDE4D, is linked both to atherosclerosis and to stroke involving smaller blood vessels and found a specific deformation in the gene associated with increased risk of stroke.

"Before our results can be used clinically, the underlying biological mechanisms for this association must be understood," Cole said.

The study was presented at the 130th meeting of the American Neurological Association in San Diego.