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| Science & Technology |
| Stopping gene-regulating activity of signaling molecule could aid heart failure prevention |
| 2021-03-31 |
| [MedPress] The human heart works under high demand, constantly pumping oxygen-rich blood through the body. When faced with disease, however, fulfilling this demand can become increasingly difficult and harmful. In the case of chronic high blood pressure—a leading cardiovascular disease in the United States—the heart continuously overexerts, resulting in maladaptive growth and, ultimately, severe dysfunction of the heart muscle itself. Maladaptive growth of the heart, known as cardiac hypertrophy, is brought about in part by activation of G protein-coupled kinase 5 (GRK5), a signaling molecule found within heart cells that previously has been linked to worsened cardiac function in heart failure. Researchers at the Lewis Katz School of Medicine at Temple University (LKSOM) now show for the first time in animals that keeping GRK5 out of the heart cell nucleus, the compartment that houses the cell's genes, can block this abnormal growth process. The new findings, published online March 30 in the journal Science Signaling, open exciting avenues for the development of GRK5-based therapies to prevent heart failure, a disease in which the heart is no longer able to pump blood through the body. Heart failure typically develops after years of the heart compensating for the effects of high blood pressure. "GRK5 acts as a pathological gene regulator in the heart, with its activity specifically in the heart cell nucleus being a major factor driving cardiac hypertrophy in heart failure," explained Walter J. Koch, Ph.D., W.W. Smith Endowed Chair in Cardiovascular Medicine, Professor and Chair of the Department of Pharmacology, Director of the Center for Translational Medicine at LKSOM, and senior investigator on the new study. GRK5 normally hangs out in the cell membrane. But in the heart, in response to hypertrophic stress, it translocates to the nucleus, binds to certain factors that regulate genes, and thereby triggers the production of proteins involved in tissue growth. |
| Posted by:Besoeker |
| #2 Wouldn't it be easier to just take your blood pressure meds? |
| Posted by: Abu Uluque 2021-03-31 12:42 |
#1  For those who may be interested, Walter Issacson's The CODE Breakers is a fascinating 'deep dive' into this sort of research. A challenging read for those (like myself) unfamiliar with the medical research, microbiology, DNA and the like, but fascinating nonetheless.Key take away: The current pandemic research appears to have prompted great strides in medical research and scientific discovery well beyond the 25m target of vaccine development and fielding, |
| Posted by: Besoeker 2021-03-31 02:03 |