Anti-inflammatory microparticles will help with a heart attack
Microparticles protect the heart after a heart attack
Strictly speaking, this is a common situation accompanying inflammation, which always affects healthy tissues.
Inflammatory cells in the heart muscle after a heart attack (photo ksqphotography).
The harm caused to the heart can be quite great, however, as researchers from Northwestern University (Getts et al., Therapeutic Inflammatory Monocyte Modulation Using Immune-Modifying Microparticles) write in Science Translational Medicine, it can be reduced if special microparticles are injected into the patient within a day after the attack.
The particles are made of biodegradable and biocompatible polymer PLGA (poly (lactic-co-glycolic) acid, a copolymer of lactic and glycolic acids), their diameter is 500 nm. They bind to immune monocytes that mediate inflammation.
The secret of the particles is that they carry a negative charge, because of which they are caught by positively charged monocyte receptors. Activation of the receptors turns on a signal chain in the cells, ordering them to die, but not where they are now, but in the spleen. That is, the usual mechanism of disposal of old immune cells is activated.
As a result, the size of inflammatory lesions in the heart tissue is reduced by 50%. In general, according to the researchers, these particles help to reduce damage in many diseases with inflammation, from colitis and peritonitis to multiple sclerosis.
By the way, the authors of the work were so inspired by the results that they immediately contacted a biotech company in order to complete technological and clinical trials of particles as soon as possible and release them to the market. Therefore, we have hope that in a few years these particles will make a good drug.
Prepared based on materials from Northwestern University: Heart Attack Damage is Slashed With Microparticle Therapy.
Portal "Eternal youth" http://vechnayamolodost.ru17.01.2014