For two decades, the Jackson Heart Study (JHS) has studied how biological, genetic and environmental factors create a disproportionate trend of heart disease in the black community. The institute has now been awarded five new contracts that will expand its investigations and aid in the identification of new cardiovascular risk factors and the development of targeted therapies.

Since its inception in 1998, JHS has followed its 5,300 black participants from the Jackson, Mississippi area and recently found that black people carry a gene that nearly doubles their likelihood of heart disease, the National Institute of Health reports. According to the director of the division of cardiovascular sciences at the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, Dr. David Goff, the study was chosen to take place in Mississippi because the state has the largest black population. The study will also dedicate itself to creating health education and risk reduction community events and elevating the participation of minorities in cardiovascular disease research.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, about 44 percent of black men and 49 percent of black women have a form of cardiovascular disease.

“Despite major reductions in death rates for cardiovascular disease over the past 5 decades, Mississippi has the nation’s highest incidence of cardiovascular deaths and cardiovascular mortality rates for both black and white residents, significantly exceeding national rates,” Dr. Goff told Blavity. “With the wealth of data and biological samples collected since the JHS inception, as well as the potential for new data collection in the study’s renewal, the JHS will offer vast opportunities for new scientific discoveries.”

The awards granted include a coordinating center to house the data and samples collected over the last 16 years from which researchers can continue their studies on the progression of cardiovascular disease, a field center to continue data collection and a community engagement center to host heart health activities for Jackson residents and others.

“This phase will broaden the study’s community engagement to ensure that not only the people of Jackson, but all Mississippians are seeing benefits from the study and, in turn, ensure their ongoing participation supports science that will continue to benefit communities across the U.S.,” Dr. Goff said.

The awards also extend to training and educational centers dedicated to attracting and serving minority students who wish to study cardiovascular epidemiology and other biomedical research.

In its next steps, JHS will continue to study connections between cardiovascular and brain health.

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