Putative Mechanisms Underlying Cardiovascular Disease Associated with Clonal Hematopoiesis of Indeterminate Potential

Characterized by the expansion of somatic mutations in the he-matopoietic lineages of aging individuals, clonal hematopoiesis of indeterminate potential (CHIP) is a common condition that in-creases the risk of developing hematological malignancies and car-diovascular disease (CVD). The presence of CHIP-associated muta-tions in hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (HSPCs) suggests that these mutations may alter the functions of the diverse he-matopoietic lineages, many of which influence the pathogenesis of CVD. Inflammation may be a potential pathogenic mechanism, linking both CVD and hematological malignancy. However, it re-mains unknown whether CHIP-associated CVD and hematologi-cal malignancy are features of a common disease spectrum. The contributions of CHIP-associated mutations to both CVD and he-matological malignancy underscore the importance of stem cell biology in pathogenesis and treatment. This review discusses possible mechanisms underlying the contributions of multiple he-matopoietic lineages to CHIP-associated CVD and the putative pathogenic links between CHIP-associated CVD and hematologi-cal malignancy.