Protein injection eliminates the symptoms of Duchenne myodystrophy
Scientists from three Canadian research centers working under the leadership of Dr. Michael Rudnicki, who previously discovered stem cells in adult muscle tissue for the first time, demonstrated on a mouse model of Duchenne myodystrophy that the introduction of the human protein Wnt7a directly into muscle tissue significantly increases its volume and strength.
Duchenne myodystrophy is a genetic disorder linked to the female sex X chromosome that affects approximately 1 in 3,500 male infants. As a rule, patients with this disease, which inevitably progresses as they grow older, die at the age of 20-30 due to atrophy of the respiratory muscles.
The results of earlier work by the same authors showed that the Wnt7a protein stimulates the growth and restoration of healthy muscle tissue. As part of their latest study, they found that in a mouse model of Duchenne myodystrophy, Wnt7a also demonstrates its miraculous properties. When the Wnt7a protein was injected into such animals, their muscle strength almost doubled and reached almost normal values. The study of muscle tissue of mice showed that therapy with Wnt7a increased the size of muscle fibers and reduced the severity of their damage compared to the condition of muscle tissue of animals in the control group.
Researchers believe that over time, injections of the Wnt7a protein may become a kind of analogue of insulin injections for patients with Duchenne myodystrophy, providing a long full life for people with diabetes. They also suggest that this therapeutic approach can help with other diseases that lead to atrophy of muscle tissue.
The biotechnological partner of the institute, Fate Therapeutics, is already working on the creation of experimental drugs based on Wnt7a for the treatment of myodystrophy. Currently, preclinical trials of such drugs are already underway, clinical trials of which the company plans to begin in the near future.
The article by Julia von Maltzahn et al. Wnt7a treatment ameliorates muscular dystrophy is published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Evgeniya Ryabtseva
Portal "Eternal youth" http://vechnayamolodost.ru based on the materials of the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute:
Protein injection points to muscular dystrophy treatment.
28.11.2012