In patients undergoing AVR surgery for AS, plasma levels of RANKL, runx2/cbfa1, and tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase (TRAP) exhibited a significant correlation to the severity of AS; in the same patients, mRNA levels of RANKL, RANK, and TRAP are significantly elevated in calcified parts of the valves compared to normal and thickened parts of the same valves obtained at time of surgery [101]. This evidence concerns the gene RUNX2 and aortic stenosis.