Scientists at Mount Sinai have made a groundbreaking discovery that could change the way we treat heart disease.
They found that a gene called Cyclin A2, also known as CCNA2, might be able to help the human heart heal itself after injury. This includes damage from a heart attack or heart failure.
The gene, CCNA2, is naturally found in our bodies but shuts down shortly after birth. Dr. Hina Chaudhry and her team at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai wanted to see what would happen if this gene was turned back on in adults.
They published their findings in the journal npj Regenerative Medicine.
Their research shows that when CCNA2 is reactivated, it can help adult heart cells make new, working heart muscle cells. This is a big deal because heart cells usually stop dividing and growing after birth.
When someone has a heart attack, they lose heart muscle cells, and the body has no natural way to grow them back. This damage often leads to long-term heart problems or the need for a transplant.
Back in 2014, Dr. Chaudhry’s team was the first to show that a pig’s heart could repair itself after a heart attack when CCNA2 was turned back on. Because pig hearts are very similar to human hearts, this gave hope that the same method might work in people.
In their new study, the team created a special virus that cannot copy itself but can carry the CCNA2 gene. They used this virus to deliver the gene to heart cells taken from healthy human donors. The heart cells came from people aged 21, 41, and 55.
The results were surprising and exciting. In the cells from the 41- and 55-year-old hearts, turning on CCNA2 made the cells divide and create new heart cells. These new cells looked and acted like normal heart cells. They kept their shape, had normal protein levels, and showed healthy calcium activity. This means they could work like normal heart muscle cells.
In contrast, the cells from the 21-year-old donor didn’t respond to the treatment. This matches earlier research showing that younger hearts still have some natural ability to repair themselves, so they may not need the help of CCNA2.
One of the most important findings is that the new cells did not become immature or cause any damage to the heart tissue. Instead, the treatment helped the cells briefly “turn back the clock,” allowing them to grow and divide without any harmful side effects.
Dr. Chaudhry says this discovery is the result of almost 20 years of research. Her team was the first to show that it might be possible to regenerate the heart by turning on sleeping genes. Now, with this new breakthrough, they are one step closer to using this therapy to help real patients.
The next big step will be getting approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to start testing this treatment in clinical trials for people with heart disease.
In summary, this study shows that turning on the CCNA2 gene in older human hearts can help them grow new muscle cells and repair damage. It offers a promising alternative to heart transplants or mechanical devices. If future trials are successful, this could lead to a new way for the heart to heal itself.
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The study is published in npj Regenerative Medicine.
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