New heart attack experimental treatment discovers way to 'reawaken' damaged cells

New heart attack experimental treatment discovers way to 'reawaken' damaged cells Around 1.4 million people alive in the UK today have survived a heart attack, says the British Heart Foundation A new experimental treatment has shown "promise" in helping regenerate muscle damaged during a heart attack. Scientists at the University of Cambridge have developed an "exciting" approach, which encourages repair of injured heart muscle after a cardiac arrest. Because adult heart cells can’t repair themselves once they’ve been damaged, the research team says the breakthrough marks an important step towards a potential curative treatment for heart disease. The treatment has shown promising results in mice, according to a study published in the journal Nature Cardiovascular Research. They explained that the treatment "reawakens" heart muscle cells so they start to divide and help repair damaged muscle. In a study in mice, it produced a stronger heartbeat and increased the amount of blood pumped through the heart with each heartbeat by around 10%, compared with mice that received a mock treatment, following a heart attack. While it is not a complete cure, the Cambridge team says that even modest improvements in heart function have been linked to lower patient mortality and a greater ability to carry out day-to-day activities. It has potential, researchers say The treatment uses mRNA therapy to temporarily activate two proteins inside heart cells, called Myc and Cyclin T1, promoting repair of heart tissue. The researchers say it has the potential to be used to treat patients with heart failure. Around 200,000 people in the UK are diagnosed with heart failure each year, and while existing treatments can ease symptoms and slow the progression of the disease, they can’t regenerate heart muscle that has already been lost. 'Exciting results, study author says Study co-senior author Professor Catherine Wilson said: “These are really exciting results. There’s no cure for heart failure, and our treatment could potentially have a meaningful impact on the quality of life of millions of people around the world. "We’re not just treating the symptoms of heart failure - this approach could help the heart to repair itself.” Following a heart attack, the mRNA therapy was injected into the hearts of the mice and its effectiveness assessed by looking at the hearts with an echocardiogram - similar to looking at a baby inside the womb. Since the treatment is short-lived and localised, it is not expected to cause any permanent modification to the heart cells – designed to reduce the risk of overgrowth, and no adverse effects were seen in the mice. Reassessing the mice after 28 days and after 12 weeks showed that the improvement in heart function is long-lasting. After a heart attack, an adult human heart can lose as many as one billion heart muscle cells, and unlike many other organs in the body, an adult heart can’t regenerate itself, so these lost cells are never replaced. Sadly, this means their loss reduces the strength of the heart. This can lead to scar formation, heart failure and ultimately death. As the global population grows and heart failure becomes more common, the cost of caring for patients is expected to rise sharply. The Cambridge team believes that reawakening heart muscle cells could be a promising way to treat people with heart failure. The team is now working to refine the treatment and has received funding from the British Heart Foundation (BHF) to continue the work. Further trials in larger animal models, followed by studies in humans, are needed to fully confirm its safety and effectiveness. It's the 'holy grail' Professor Bryan Williams, chief scientific and medical officer at the BHF, said: “Getting the human heart to repair itself is the holy grail for cardiologists. The heart is easily repaired when we are babies in the womb, but our heart muscle cells lose the ability to regenerate and fix the heart shortly after we are born. “That makes it exciting when studies like this are able to reignite regeneration in heart muscle cells." He added: "The gene therapy used by the researchers shows clear potential for heart patients. While the research is in mice, and still at an early stage, it is an important step forward towards therapies which could help repair the damage to the heart following a heart attack.”