An increased expression of the newly identified stroke genes Il6ra, Il6st, S100a4, Stat1, and Stat2, but also the known genes Col1a1, Col1a2, Col3a1, has been implicated in blood vessel remodeling and contributes to vascular rarefaction, leakage, and intracranial aneurysms (Peters et al., 2001; Basile et al., 2011). Here, STAT1 is linked to Dilatation of the cerebral artery.