Discrimination increases health problems, according to the results of a study published in the medical journal PLOS ONE. The stress caused by this form of harassment would have a genetic impact and would increase the risk of hypertension.
Researchers from the University of Florida in the United States conducted a study to understand whether discrimination affects health.
They conducted anthropological analysis, ethnographic interviews with 157 African American participants. 30,000 genetic variants were taken into account. 8 significant genetic mutations in 5 genes associated with cardiovascular diseases have also been identified.
Discrimination would explain health disparities between populations
When the researchers related these genetic measures to sociocultural information, including a discrimination score, they observed significant links between blood pressure and a new class of genes associated with psychosocial distress and mood disorders.
The same genetic variants that predispose some people to depression, anxiety or suicide may, for some, increase susceptibility to the effects of discrimination and increase the risk ofhypertension.
The role of these genes in blood pressure regulation only becomes relevant when there is discrimination and may explain why it has so far been so difficult to understand the mechanisms of racial disparities in disease.
“In summary, this genetic-environment/discrimination interaction should be taken into account in any study of complex diseases such as hypertension, certain types of cancer and certain psychological disorders”, concludes Connie Mulligan, professor in the Department of Anthropology and of UF genetics.
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