Science
Researchers identify three proteins which could prevent heart failure after heart attack
Published:
31 August 2022
Published:
31 August 2022
Scientists have discovered three new proteins that can be injected directly into the heart immediately after a heart attack, which could preserve heart function and prevent heart failure, according to research we funded published today in Science Translational Medicine.
Every five minutes someone is admitted to hospital with a heart attack in the UK. When someone has a heart attack, the small vessels that supply the heart with oxygen rich blood become blocked. When this happens, the heart muscle cells can die, and this can lead to heart failure where the heart cannot pump blood as well as it needs to.
Heart failure is the primary cause of death and disability globally, affecting almost one million people in the UK and around 64 million people worldwide. It is a debilitating condition that makes everyday tasks extremely difficult and currently there is no cure.
For the first time, a team of researchers, led by Mauro Giacca, Professor of Cardiovascular Sciences at King’s College London, have found three new proteins which could protect heart cells against the rapid cell death that typically occurs following a heart attack, using an innovative technology called FunSel.
FunSel is a protein ‘search engine’ that screens a library of human proteins to identify those with therapeutic potential. Starting from a library of over 1,000 proteins, FunSel identified three (Chrdl1, Fam3c and Fam3b) which prevent damage to the heart muscle cells in mice after a heart attack and preserve heart function over time.
After preclinical testing, the team plan to take the innovative treatment to patient clinical in the next two years. If successful this would be the first therapy that could protect heart cells following a heart attack.
Professor Mauro Giacca, Professor of Cardiovascular Sciences at King’s College London said:
“This is the very first time that potentially curative factors for the heart are directly identified for their therapeutic potential. Any of the three proteins we have identified can be administered immediately after a heart attack to minimise cardiac damage and thus prevent heart failure. There has been no significant development in this field for a long time, so we are very excited by this discovery.”
Professor James Leiper, Associate Medical Director at the British Heart Foundation, said:
“Halting damage to the heart after it has become injured is a huge challenge in cardiology, but this major development has the potential to spearhead a new type of treatment to help protect and minimise damage after a heart attack. We’re proud to support such a ground-breaking discovery that will hopefully lead to new protective medicines in the future.”