Increased blood lipid levels are heritable risk factors of cardiovascular disease with varied
prevalence worldwide owing to different dietary patterns and medication use. Despite
advances in prevention and treatment, in particular through reducing low-density lipoprotein
cholesterol levels, heart disease remains the leading cause of death worldwide. Genome-
wideassociation studies (GWAS) of blood lipid levels have led to important biological and
clinical insights, as well as new drug targets, for cardiovascular disease. However, most …

This work was funded by the National Institutes for Health Research (NIHR) as part of the
portfolio of translational research of the NIHR Barts Biomedical Research Unit and the NIHR
Biomedical Research Centre at Imperial College, the International Centre for Circulatory
Health Charity and the Medical Research Council through G952010. We thank all ASCOT
trial participants, physicians, nurses, and practices in the participating countries for their
important contribution to the study. The study was investigator-led and was conducted …