New strategy: scientists accelerate blood vessel maturation
A team of EU-funded scientists has described a new mechanism to enhance the restoration of the blood flow in ischaemic diseases, which constitute some of the leading causes of death worldwide. Writing in the journal Nature, the team, made up of scientists from Belgium, Finland, Italy, Portugal, Spain, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and the United States demonstrate that blocking the protein PhD2 in white blood cells accelerates the maturation of blood vessels. This in turn leads to a better blood perfusion to organs that had been deprived of blood, and by extension oxygen, due to an ischaemic disease. The study was given a boost from a EUR 1.31 million European Research Council (ERC) Starting Grant awarded to one of the authors of the paper, Michele De Palma of the San Raffaele Scientific Institute in Italy, as part of the TIE2+MONOCYTES ('Tie2-expressing monocytes: Role in tumor angiogenesis and therapeutic targeting') project under the 'Ideas' Theme of the Seventh Framework Programme (FP7). 'Ischaemic diseases can lead to serious damage to organs, for instance through a heart attack or stroke. It is a good feeling to find possible new therapeutic strategies to restrict the following damage to a minimum,' says another study author, Massimiliano Mazzone, from the VIB Vesalius Research Center at the K.U. Leuven. The team showed how the growth of pre-existing connections between distinct blood vessels into functional arteries (a process called arteriogenesis) can be accelerated by blocking the function of the protein PhD2 in a particular class of white blood cells. This resulted in wider and functional vessels, allowing the blood to bypass the occlusion and thus offering better blood perfusion. Now the team wants to continue looking into the therapeutic potential of blocking PhD2 for ischaemic diseases, and they hope that their findings could lead to a new therapeutic approach in ischaemic diseases to prevent damage to organs. In order to function properly, every organ in our body needs access to vital substances such as oxygen. Blood takes care of the transport throughout our body to the different organs, and it also removes toxic products. If no blood is reaching a certain organ, then irreversible damage may be done. This is what happens in ischaemic diseases, which can lead to heart attacks and strokes. The challenge facing the world of medical science is to restore blood flow as soon as possible so as to prevent organ damage from occurring. The aim of the TIE2+MONOCYTES project is to take part in various studies into angiogenesis.For more information, please visit: VIB: http://www.vib.be/en/Pages/default.aspx(opens in new window)
Countries
Belgium, Switzerland, Spain, Finland, Italy, Portugal, United Kingdom, United States