DISCOVERIES2 heart failure. Now, researchers at
the University of California, San Diego
think they may have a solution – an
injectable hydrogel that can form a
scaffold around damaged cardiac
muscle and encourage the growth of
healthy, new tissue.
Dubbed VentriGel, the material has
passed its initial safety trials. It is
made from the natural scaffolding of
cardiac muscle tissue – also known as
extracellular matrix, or ECM – which
is taken from pigs. The tissue is then
stripped of muscle cells, freeze-dried
and milled into powder form. It can
then be turned into a fluid that can be
easily injected into heart muscle in a
minimally invasive procedure.
The team tested the gel in a
preliminary study of 15 patients who
had sustained moderate damage in the
left chamber of the heart following a
heart attack. All 15 were experiencing
mild to moderate heart failure following
a heart attack, with half suffering a
heart attack within the past year.
The patients all took a six-minute
walking test as well as a heart
function assessment and a heart health
questionnaire before receiving up to SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY, GET T Y IMAGES, DAVID BAILLOT/UNIVERSIT Y OF CALIFORNIA, SAN DIEGOResearchers at the University of Oxford have identified
areas of the human genome associated with le-handedness.
The team made the discovery aer analysing the genomes of
400,000 people, including more than 32,000 le-handers,
stored in the UK Biobank database. They found four genetic
variants that contribute to le-handedness. Three of these
are associated with proteins involved in the structure and
development of the brain.News
in brief
GENES FOR LEFT-HANDEDNESS IDENTIFIEDProf Karen Christman
led the development
of VentriGel18 injections of VentriGel into the
damaged region via catheter.
The researchers then monitored the
patients’ progress for six months after
treatment, repeating the tests at the
three-month and six-month marks.
“Although the study was designed
to evaluate safety and feasibility
and not designed to show whetherVentriGel effectively helps improve
heart function, we observed some
improvements in patients,” said senior
author Prof Karen Christman. “For
example, patients could walk longer
distances. We also observed signs of
improving heart function in patients
who experienced a heart attack more
than one year prior to treatment.”In this microscope image of heart tissue, the darker
regions along the bo om are muscle fibres that have died
following a heart a ackDISCOVERIES2 heart failure. Now, researchers at
the University of California, San Diego
think they may have a solution – an
injectable hydrogel that can form a
scaffold around damagedcardiac
muscle and encourage the growth of
healthy, new tissue.
Dubbed VentriGel, the material has
passed its initial safety trials. It is
made from the natural scaffolding of
cardiac muscle tissue – also known as
extracellular matrix, or ECM – which
is taken from pigs. The tissue is then
stripped of muscle cells, freeze-dried
and milled into powder form. It can
then be turned into a fluid that can be
easily injected into heart muscle in a
minimally invasive procedure.
The team tested the gel in a
preliminary study of 15 patients who
had sustained moderate damage in the
left chamber of the heart following a
heart attack. All 15 were experiencing
mild to moderate heart failure following
a heart attack, with half suffering a
heart attack within the past year.
The patients all took a six-minute
walking test as well as a heart
function assessment and a heart health
questionnaire before receiving up to SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY, GET T Y IMAGES, DAVID BAILLOT/UNIVERSIT Y OF CALIFORNIA, SAN DIEGO
Researchers at the University of Oxford have identified
areas of the human genome associated with le-handedness.
The team made the discovery aer analysing the genomes of
400,000 people, including more than 32,000 le-handers,
stored in the UK Biobank database. They found four genetic
variants that contribute to le-handedness. Three of these
are associated with proteins involved in the structure and
development of the brain.News
in brief
GENES FOR LEFT-HANDEDNESS IDENTIFIEDProf Karen Christman
led the development
of VentriGel18 injections of VentriGel into the
damaged region via catheter.
The researchers then monitored the
patients’ progress for six months after
treatment, repeating the tests at the
three-month and six-month marks.
“Although the study was designed
to evaluate safety and feasibility
and not designed to show whetherVentriGel effectively helps improve
heart function, we observed some
improvements in patients,” said senior
author Prof Karen Christman. “For
example, patients could walk longer
distances. We also observed signs of
improving heart function in patients
who experienced a heart attack more
than one year prior to treatment.”In this microscope image of heart tissue, the darker
regions along the bo om are muscle fibres that have died
following a heart a ack