Heart disease is one of the leading causes of death worldwide. In the United States, it accounts for about 25% of all deaths. One of the most dangerous forms is coronary artery disease, which happens when plaque builds up in the arteries, reducing blood flow to the heart.
If untreated, it can lead to heart attacks or strokes. Scientists are constantly trying to understand why this disease happens and how to stop it.
A group of researchers at the University of Virginia Health has made a discovery that could help develop new treatments. Their findings focus on certain cells inside blood vessels and how they may unexpectedly contribute to the disease.
How Blood Vessel Cells Behave
The inside of our blood vessels is lined with smooth muscle cells. These cells help keep blood vessels strong and flexible. In healthy arteries, they form a protective layer over plaque, preventing it from breaking apart and causing dangerous blockages.
However, in some cases, these same cells may behave in the opposite way. Instead of protecting the blood vessels, they seem to encourage plaque growth, which makes coronary artery disease worse. Scientists have long wondered why these cells switch from being protective to harmful.
The Role of Sugar and Nitrogen in This Process
To investigate this mystery, a research team led by Dr. Mete Civelek and his doctoral student, Noah Perry, studied smooth muscle cells from heart transplant donors. They wanted to find out which genes might be responsible for the unexpected behavior of these cells.
Their study pointed to a connection between the way these cells process nitrogen and glycogen, a type of sugar that the body uses for energy storage. This discovery suggests that problems with how these substances are used in the cells may play a key role in the development of heart disease.
One particular sugar, called mannose, caught the researchers’ attention. Their findings suggest that mannose might contribute to the harmful changes in smooth muscle cells, but more research is needed to confirm this.
Why This Discovery Matters
Understanding what makes smooth muscle cells turn harmful is an important step toward better treatments. If scientists can figure out the exact triggers for this change, doctors may be able to develop new ways to stop it. This could lead to better methods for preventing and treating coronary artery disease.
Dr. Civelek points out that, while existing treatments like cholesterol-lowering drugs and blood pressure medication help reduce heart disease risk, they are not enough to fully prevent or cure the disease. Finding new treatment targets is critical.
The research team, including Perry, Diana Albarracin, and Redouane Aherrahrou, is continuing its work to uncover more details about this process. They hope their discoveries will lead to breakthroughs that can help millions of people affected by heart disease.
Steps You Can Take for Heart Health
While scientists work on new treatments, there are already known ways to lower heart disease risk. Studies suggest that vitamin D may help reduce inflammation, and vitamin K could lower heart disease risk by as much as a third.
Eating a healthy diet, exercising regularly, and managing stress are also important steps to protect heart health. New research is constantly revealing more about how food and lifestyle choices affect the heart.
This study was published in Circulation: Genomic and Precision Medicine.
If you care about heart health, please read studies that vitamin K helps cut heart disease risk by a third, and a year of exercise reversed worrisome heart failure.
For more health information, please see recent studies about supplements that could help prevent heart disease, stroke, and results showing this food ingredient may strongly increase heart disease death risk.
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