(ANSA) – TRIESTE, 10 JAN – A biological drug, a monoclonal antibody capable of blocking fibrosis and protecting the heart muscle after a myocardial infarction. It is the result of a research led by Serena Zacchigna, professor of Molecular Biology at the University of Trieste and head of the Cardiovascular Biology laboratory of the International Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (ICGEB) of Trieste, and which represents a turning point in the field of innovative cardiovascular therapies. The research, to which the University of Zagreb (Croatia) collaborated, was published by Nature Communications specifying that the study showed that the antibody has a beneficial effect through a double mechanism: it reduces the deposition of fibrous tissue that limits the function pump of the heart and promotes the survival of heart muscle cells.
“The new biological therapies are transforming oncological treatments or hereditary diseases, while there are very few biological drugs for the treatment of cardiovascular diseases – explains Zacchigna – The vast majority of therapies approved to date are small chemical molecules that generally have a single target. , for example, block the action of an enzyme or a receptor. On the contrary, biological drugs (recombinant proteins, gene therapy products and cell therapy) reproduce elements that normally exist in our tissues and therefore have the potential to interfere with mechanisms therapy complexes. However, they are more difficult to prepare and use, as well as more expensive, and therefore complicated to translate from experimental studies to patients “.
The result of a long collaboration between the Trieste institutes (ICGEB and UniTS) and the University of Zagreb, the study reveals the fundamental role of a family of proteins, called Bone Morphogenetic Proteins (BMPs), in the evolution of cardiac fibrosis after an event ischemic. In the last phase of the project, a group of cardiac surgeons from Innsbruck joined the Trieste-Zagreb axis and brought their experiences and skills to the mechanisms underlying ischemic damage and the development of innovative therapies. Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death worldwide, as well as causing the main source of health care costs. In Italy, more than 20 billion euros are spent per year on the treatment of these diseases. And the numbers are set to grow over the next few years. (HANDLE).
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