New methods to avoid surgeries

• April 18, 2024

It is likely that in a few years open heart surgeries will be discarded forever. What is new in the treatment of serious cardiac diseases has to do with biotechnology and the natural biological regeneration of the heart.

A study from the University of Tel Aviv (Israel) has shown that a protein causes the blood vessels of a human heart to be reborn, eliminating the need for a risky operation. In heart disease, blood vessels clog or disappear, depriving the heart of oxygen and making it more susceptible to heart attack. The Israeli researchers developed an intramuscular protein injection that causes the growth of tiny blood vessels, which could give a new opportunity to millions of people around the world. "Biotechnology based on the therapy of our protein structure is very complicated, but the objective is simple and the solution is simple," says Britta Hardy, one of the researchers. "We intend to inject a drug that heals any tissue devoid of oxygen, the growth of new blood vessels occurs in a few weeks, significantly improving circulation."

First steps for regeneration

Another pioneering experiment, involving the University of Minnesota (United States), the Gregorio Marañón Hospital and the National Transplant Organization of Spain, develops a technique that consists in using the matrix of an organ and making tissues grow from of a sowing of stem cells. In this case, a discarded heart is used for transplantation.

The first step is to treat this organ with an enzymatic detergent to remove the cells from the donor. It is about dissolving the meat and leaving the matrix of the heart clean (what would be the skeleton, if we spoke of bone, or the infrastructure formed by connective tissues in this case). From there, the structure is sown with stem cells for the heart to regenerate. This step is complicated but there are already antecedents: according to Spanish specialists, because tests have been done with trachea and small animals. Only one step remains to be demonstrated: that this structure, conveniently irrigated with stem cells, starts beating.
 

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