Phenotype of vulnerable atherosclerotic plaques shows strong association with single nucleotide polymorphism alleles of common risk variants for coronary artery disease

Objectives: The risk of plaques to induce vessel occlusion mainly depends on plaque phenotype. Compared to stable plaques, vulnerable lesions are prone to rupture due to their composition. While several risk alleles have been identified for coronary artery disease (CAD) none of these studies analyzed a potential association with plaque phenotype.