Tuesday, October 11, 2022

Groundbreaking research uncovers what protects us from heart disease

Good news!

"... the research found that endothelial progenitor cells – which help repair the inner lining of a blood vessel following vascular injury – as well as telomere length, may play a critical role in preventing heart disease. The results of the study were recently published in the Coronary Artery Disease medical journal. ...
the research set out to uncover why some people never develop heart disease despite having high-risk profiles (diabetes, smoking, excess cholesterol, etc.), while others do. ...
Researchers found that patients with a high risk for coronary artery disease but with healthy arteries had greater endothelial progenitor cell function than patients with existing heart disease. In addition, they also discovered that these cells had longer telomeres (which indicate a cell’s lifespan) in individuals with normal arteries. Telomere length has previously been shown to be correlated with overall cell health. ..."

From the abstract:
"Background 
Endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) have an important role in repair following vascular injury. Telomere length has been shown to be correlated with genome stability and overall cell health. We hypothesized that both EPCs and telomere size are related to protective mechanisms against coronary artery disease. Our aim was to evaluate the level and function of circulating EPCs and telomere length in patients with multiple cardiovascular risk factors and anatomically normal coronary arteries vs. matched controls.
Methods 
We included 24 patients, with coronary CTA demonstrating normal coronaries and a high risk of CAD of >10% by ASCVD risk estimator. Control groups included 17 patients with similar cardiovascular profiles but with established CAD and a group of 20 healthy volunteers. ...
Results 
Patients with high risk for CVD and normal coronaries had augmented EPCs function, compared with the CAD group (1.1 vs. 0.22 CFU/f; P = 0.04) and longer telomeres compared with the CAD group (10.7 kb vs. 2.8 kb P = 0.015). These patients displayed a similar profile to the healthy group.
Conclusion 
Patients with a high risk for CAD, but normal coronary arteries have EPCs function and telomere length which resemble healthy volunteers, and augmented compared with patients with established CAD, which could serve as a protective mechanism against atherosclerosis development in these high-risk patients."

Groundbreaking research uncovers what protects us from heart disease - The Jerusalem Post Assuta Ashdod-led study finds protective biological factors that prevent the development of atherosclerosis in high-risk individuals.


Assuta Ashdod's Dr. Einat Shaked, who led the research with her hands deep in her pants pockets 😊


No comments: