Preventing A Broken Heart: Research Aims To Reduce Scarring From Heart Attacks
Posted Dec 21 2008 10:21am
A heart damaged by heart attack is usually broken, at least partially, for good. The injury causes excessive scar tissue to form, and this plays a role in permanently keeping heart muscle from working at full capacity.
Now researchers have identified a key molecule involved in controlling excessive scar tissue formation in mice following a heart attack. When they stopped the scarring from occurring, the scientists found that the animals’ heart function greatly improved following the injury.
The study, by scientists at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and Cornell University, appears in the current Nature Cell Biology online.
The findings offer heartening news for the millions who have heart attacks each year and suffer from the resulting poor heart function. The study raises the hope that the outlook for people with this major disability might be markedly improved.
A heart damaged by heart attack is usually broken, at least partially, for good. The injury causes excessive scar tissue to form, and this plays a role in permanently keeping heart muscle from working at full capacity.
Now researchers have identified a key molecule involved in controlling excessive scar tissue formation in mice following a heart attack. When they stopped the scarring from occurring, the scientists found that the animals’ heart function greatly improved following the injury.
The study, by scientists at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and Cornell University, appears in the current Nature Cell Biology online.
The findings offer heartening news for the millions who have heart attacks each year and suffer from the resulting poor heart function. The study raises the hope that the outlook for people with this major disability might be markedly improved.
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