Health
Protein Patch Helps Building New Heart Muscle
Sumayah Aamir, I4U.COM
(I4U.com) – The experts have identified a special protein that can be applied to cardiac patients in the form of patches. The patches will help their heart muscle cells grow back again after the debilitating heart attacks they suffered.
Basically, the patch is meant to be placed inside the heart where it will regenerate cardiac muscle. Experiments on rats and pigs prove the efficacy of this application. The animals’ hearts recovered within a month or two. Within two more years, the patch will be ready for use in human beings as well.
The study was published in a journal Nature on September 16th.
“We are really excited about the prospect of bringing this technology to the clinic,” said Mark Mercola, professor of Bioengineering at UC San Diego and professor in the Development, Aging, and Regeneration Program at SBP. “It’s commercially viable, clinically attractive and you don’t need immunosuppressive drugs.”
The biotechnology is currently being used in clinical trial settings. It is hoped that this methodology will prove a successful venture in the future. The costs are minimal, the procedure is clean and not messy and there is no need for any medicines that suppress immune functioning.
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