This project aims to collect arteries and risk factor data from 1400 young persons 15-34 years of age who die from violence or accidents and are autopsied in Medical Examiner's Laboratories. These cases will supplement and extend the findings in the 1800 cases that will be collected in the ongoing study """"""""Pathobiological Determinants of Atherosclerosis in Youth"""""""". The major purpose of the additional cases are to 1.) obtain an adequate number of cases in women; 2.) increase the power of the study to detect associations of risk factors with raised lesions, which appear in this age group; and 3.) increase the power to detect genetic effects on atherogenesis. Aortic and coronary lesions are to be measured by visual estimation and by gross and histologic morphometry combined with computerized image analysis. Risk factor measurement include cholesterol and lipoprotein cholesterol concentrations in postmortem serum; thiocyanate blood levels in postmortem serum as marker for smoking; evaluation of blood pressure by wall thickness of renal arteries and arterioles and DNA polymorphism by evaluation of liver samples. Collection of suitable specimen is to be performed by participating centers in close collaboration with local medical examiners. Processing of arteries, blood, liver and other tissues is carried out in central laboratories and data management by a statistical center. Cases will only be identified by sequence numbers. Names, SSNumber etc. will not be disclosed to others. As part of this project investigators at the University of Maryland (U of MD) request funding for the collection center component at the University of Maryland. The U. of MD will concentrate on obtaining cases with short postmortem interval in order to enhance preservation of tissues, in particular the endothelial surface of vascular structures.
