Genomics and hypertension - Concepts, potentials, and opportunities

We are at the beginning of a biological revolution, spurred on by the Human Genome Project and associated studies. Within the next few years, expresse d sequence tags (ESTs) representing all sequences expressed in humans will be determined and their genomic positions will be defined (STSs). The disco very of all the variants in the human genome that contribute to the genetic diversity of the human population will result in the construction of dense polymorphic maps. The rapid growth of the EST, STS, and single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) databases, coupled with impressive technological advance s, will surely have a dramatic effect on biomedical research. In this revie w, we will examine the recent advances in genetics and genomics and place t hese within the context of medical research and patient care, with an empha sis on studies in the cardiovascular system.