Cardiovascular disease is currently the leading non-communicable cause of morbidity and mortality nationwide. According to the American Heart Association, the most common form of cardiovascular disease is coronary heart disease, a condition in which blood flow to the heart is reduced due to a narrowing of the coronary arteries. These arteries play a significant role in regulating the flow of oxygenated blood to the heart. When blood circulates through arteries, it exerts a force against the walls of the vessels, known as blood pressure. To resist this pressure, elastic fibers interspersed along artery walls allow the arteries to expand and contract. Abnormally high blood pressure, however, will cause these muscles to thicken due to tears in the walls of damaged arteries that trap particles that clump together as plaque. The progressive accumulation of plaque eventually leads to a narrowing of the arteries, resulting in decreased blood flow to the heart and other organs of the body. This cascade of events triggered by hypertension illustrates why hypertension is one of the most important risk factors for cardiovascular disease. Affecting 1 in 3 adults in the United States alone, hypertension substantially increases the risk of heart disease in an affected individual who is most likely not showing any signs or symptoms. In addition to the risks associated with this “silent killer,” comorbidities such as obesity, diabetes, and high cholesterol can dramatically worsen health outcomes in hypertensive patients. Given the high prevalence and serious consequences of hypertension if undetected, research on this particular topic will increase our understanding of the causes of hypertension by identifying and narrowing down major candidates for the herb......half of the article ......sion may guide the development of a possible cure for hypertension through gene therapy. Conceptually, the gene therapy strategy has many advantages over conventional drug treatment, such as long-term modification of defective genes or variants and elimination of side effect problems. Interestingly, the genetics of essential hypertension is an interesting question because we often think of hypertension as a result of our lifestyle habits and environmental factors. However, studying genetics can actually help predict disorders in at-risk individuals by examining particular affected genetic loci that influence that disorder. Such an intervention would make the prevention and treatment of hypertension, a widespread disorder with a large impact on cardiovascular morbidity and mortality nowadays, more feasible and highly effective...