TY - JOUR T1 - Association of chemokine CXC ligand 12 gene polymorphism (rs1746048) with cardiovascular mortality in patients with rheumatoid arthritis: results from the Norfolk Arthritis Register JF - Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases JO - Ann Rheum Dis SP - 2099 LP - 2102 DO - 10.1136/annrheumdis-2015-207851 VL - 74 IS - 11 AU - Ibrahim Ibrahim AU - Jennifer Humphreys AU - Ibtisam Mokhtar AU - Tarnya Marshall AU - Suzanne Verstappen AU - Deborah Symmons AU - Sebastien Viatte AU - Anne Barton AU - Darren Plant Y1 - 2015/11/01 UR - http://ard.bmj.com/content/74/11/2099.abstract N2 - Patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) are at increased risk of premature mortality, with cardiovascular disease (CVD) forming the primary cause.1 Previous studies have identified correlations between genetic polymorphisms located both inside2 and outside3 the human leucocyte antigen locus with increased risk of CVD morbidity and mortality, independent of traditional CVD risk factors.A recent genome-wide association study identified a genetic variant (rs1746048) proximal to the CXCL12 gene on chromosome 10q11.21, that is strongly associated with coronary artery disease (p=8.1×10−9),4 increased carotid intimal–medial thickness5 and plasma levels of CXCL12.6 Several studies have highlighted an important role for CXCL12 in RA by demonstrating increased levels of CXCL12 in synovial fluid, as well as upregulation of CXCL12 mRNA in synovial fibroblasts, which may contribute to sustained inflammation.7 However, a large study of Spanish patients with established RA did not detect an association with CVD outcome and a … ER -