The etiology of somatic mutations in PAD is multifactorial. Several risk factors, including aging, exposure to environmental toxins, chronic inflammation, radiation, and oxidative stress, can induce DNA damage and the subsequent accumulation of somatic mutations [
14]. Additionally, genetic predisposition and underlying vascular diseases, such as atherosclerosis, can increase the susceptibility to somatic mutations in PAD. Epidemiological studies have provided valuable insights into the prevalence and distribution of somatic mutations in PAD. Large-scale genomic sequencing efforts have identified specific somatic mutations in genes associated with vascular biology, inflammation, and DNA repair pathways [
13]. CHIP-PAD and CHIP pan-arterial atherosclerosis mutations most frequently occur in genes responsible for regulating epigenetics (DNMT3A and TET2), DNA damage repair (DDR) genes (PPM1D, TP53, and BRCA1/2), cell cycle and transcriptional regulator genes (JAK2 and ASXL1) [
15], and mutations that specifically disrupt splicing factor genes (LUC7L2, PRPF8, SF3B1, SRSF2, U2AF1, and ZRSR2) [
16]. These studies have revealed the heterogeneity of somatic mutations across PAD patients, highlighting the importance of understanding their impact on vascular biology. Various types of somatic mutations can occur in PAD, each with distinct effects on vascular biology. Point mutations, insertions, deletions, and structural rearrangements can disrupt critical genes involved in vascular homeostasis, cellular proliferation, differentiation, and apoptosis, leading to PAD progression [
17,
18]. These mutations can affect key regulators of vascular function, including endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) [
19], vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) [
20], and components of the renin-angiotensin system [
21], contributing to the development and progression of PAD. Large-scale chromosomal rearrangements, including copy number variations and chromosomal translocations, can occur as somatic mutations in PAD, disrupting critical genes and regulatory regions and resulting in dysregulation of cellular processes involved in vascular biology, such as angiogenesis, extracellular matrix remodeling, and smooth muscle cell function [
22,
23]. Denny et al. [
24] utilized electronic health record (EHR) definitions of diseases to investigate the connection between CHIP and various types of atherosclerotic disease affecting different vascular beds, including the mesenteric, coronary, cerebral, and aneurysmal vessels. The study found significant associations between CHIP and coronary artery disease (CAD), any aortic aneurysm, and chronic mesenteric ischemia. Notably, these associations were consistently more pronounced when large CHIP clones were present. Furthermore, CHIP was linked to the development of pan-arterial atherosclerosis, and once again, the effects were stronger in the presence of large CHIP clones. Of note, Zekavat et al. [
25] classified the CHIP-PAD and CHIP pan-arterial atherosclerosis assessments by putative driver genes and specific mutations, centering on DNMT3A, TET2, ASXL1, JAK2, the DDR genes (PPM1D and TP53), and mutations that specifically disrupt splicing factor genes (LUC7L2, PRPF8, SF3B1, SRSF2, U2AF1, and ZRSR2). They discovered an association of CHIP with PAD involving the four frequently occurring CHIP genes (DNMT3A, TET2, ASXL1, and JAK2), with drastic heterogeneity of incident PAD effect sizes across the CHIP genes. These data also revealed the new outcome that DDR-TP53 and PPM1D CHIP associate with incident PAD/CAD, with a greater effect on PAD conferred by TP53. Among the mutations associated with CHIP, the role of TET2 is well-established in vascular disease. TET2's normal function plays a significant role in regulating important processes in both macro- and microcirculation [
26]. These processes include preventing the transformation of vascular smooth muscle cells, offering protection to endothelial cells, and exerting anti-inflammatory and anti-atherogenic effects [
27,
28].
Maintenance of genomic integrity is crucial for proper vascular function, and impairments in DNA damage response can contribute to the accumulation of somatic mutations in PAD [
29]. Cells have intricate DNA repair pathways, including base excision repair (BER), nucleotide excision repair (NER), mismatch repair (MMR), and homologous recombination (HR), which counteract DNA damage and maintain genomic stability [
30]. Chronic exposure to risk factors like oxidative stress and chronic inflammation can overwhelm the DNA repair capacity, leading to increased DNA damage and the accumulation of somatic mutations [
31,
32]. Defects in specific DNA repair genes, such as those involved in the BER or NER pathways, can further exacerbate DNA damage accumulation in PAD. Dysfunctional DNA repair and response pathways can perpetuate the accumulation of somatic mutations, promote genomic instability, and contribute to the progression of PAD [
25,
29]. In this respect, Zekavat et al. identified 338 and 419 incident PAD cases in UK biobank (UKB) and Mass General Brigham Biobank (MGBB), respectively. Based on their results, CHIP was positively associated with an increased risk of PAD incidents in the UKB and MGBB [
25]. More interestingly, Bick et al. revealed that those with larger CHIP clone sizes had greater risk for PAD, which is associate more strongly with unfavorable clinical manifestations [
33]. Specific genes affected by somatic mutations in PAD have been identified, and understanding their functional consequences is critical for unraveling disease mechanisms [
2].