Human study · Research · 1 Oct 2026
In 9,879 ARIC participants, dozens of blood proteins sat on the path between social disadvantage and later heart failure
Source: UT Southwestern / Science Advances
What the research found
Study (observational proteomics). Amil Shah and colleagues, including UT Southwestern researchers Victoria Lamberson and Tammy Leonard, report in Science Advances (21 August 2026; 12(34):eaec5063; doi 10.1126/sciadv.aec5063; UT Southwestern roundup 1 October 2026). At ARIC visit 3 (1993–1995), 9,879 people free of heart failure (mean age 60, standard deviation 6; 46% men) had 4,955 plasma proteins measured. A social-disadvantage factor built from income, education, and area deprivation was linked to later heart failure through dozens of proteins: 36 in Black participants, 126 in white participants, and 12 shared. Eight proteins showed a mediation signal. Key results were checked in 49,396 UK Biobank participants. Mendelian randomization pointed to C1QTNF1 as a possible causal contributor; that is genetic evidence, not a treatment trial. Educational notes. This does not say a blood test should be ordered from a headline.
Evidence level: Human study. A study in people, but an association isn't proof of cause.
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