On Apr. 30, 2024, National Institutes of Health researchers and collaborators announced they had discovered over 100 new regions of the human genome, also known as genomic loci, that appear to influence a personﾒs blood pressure. Results of the study also point to several specific genomic loci that may be relevant to iron metabolism and a type of cellular receptor known as adrenergic receptors.

The study, published in Nature Genetics, was one of the largest such genomic studies of blood pressure to date, including data from over 1 million participants and laying the groundwork for researchers to better understand how blood pressure is regulated. Such insights could point to potential new drug targets.