Scientists ‘cure’ heart attacks in mice – are humans next?

Scientists have managed to heal the hearts of mice who have suffered a heart attack. While the study doesn’t immediately translate to humans, it is a first step in tackling a major disease that affects thousands of people every year.

The researchers believe the two-part study (here and here), published in the Journal of Cardiovascular Aging, is groundbreaking in the field and could lead to new treatments for people in the near future.

The researchers used a new technology, a synthetic mRNA optimized to transmit instructions to the body. mRNAs transport protein information from inside a cell to the outside, thereby contributing to a growing protein chain. The synthetic mRNA changes the way the heart muscle works, allowing it to function more like stem cells and enabling them to regenerate and heal themselves, which they cannot do on their own.

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Heart attacks and heart disease are usually life-threatening conditions that are difficult to overcome due to the nature of their cells. Once people are struck by a heart attack or cardiovascular disease, their hearts and systems usually remain in a more vulnerable place than before.

“The lab found that myocardial cells proliferated rapidly within a day, while over the next month the hearts were repaired to near-normal pumping function with little scarring,” said Robert Schwartz, Hugh Roy and Lillie Cranz Cullen Distinguished University Professor of Biology & Biochemistry at the University of Houston.

While there will likely be a significant time lag between this study and its implications for humans, this is a great first step.

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According to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), heart disease is currently the number one killer in the United States.