Scientists find 'missing link' between heart failure and environment

Scientists find 'missing link' between heart failure and environment 
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2010-01/uoc-sf011110.php    
 
"Scientists have found what they believe is the "missing link" between heart failure, our genes and our environment. The study could open up completely new ways of managing and treating heart disease.
 
The Cambridge team compared heart tissue from two groups – patients with end-stage heart failure and those with healthy hearts. The diseased tissue came from men who had undergone heart transplants at Papworth Hospital, Cambridge, and the healthy hearts from age-matched victims of road traffic accidents.
 
They found that specific regions of the DNA in the diseased hearts contained "marks" known as DNA methylation, whereas the healthy hearts did not. This is the first study linking DNA methylation with human heart failure."