Do Zebrafish Hold the Key to Heart Regeneration? 

Heart regeneration after heart attacks can stop poor health outcomes, read for more research

The human body has an incredible capacity for self-repair. Our skin can regenerate after a small cut, bones can heal after fractures and even the liver can regrow to its original size after 70% is lost or removed (3). However, when it comes to the heart, the story is very different. As Miley Cyrus once sang, “nothing breaks like a heart” – and science agrees. Unlike other organs, the heart has almost no ability to regenerate itself after injuries. In instances like myocardial infarctions, more commonly known as heart attacks, large amounts of cardiomyocytes (CMs)—the cells responsible for heart muscle contraction—are lost and cannot be regenerated, causing the formation of non-regenerative fibrotic scar tissue and, ultimately, decline in heart function (1).  

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suPAR: A New Approach to Treating Cardiovascular Disease

Cardiovascular disease (CVD), continues to be the leading cause of death in the United States and worldwide. Many patients with CVD have signs of chronic kidney disease (CKD), and those with CKD are often times disproportionately affected by CVD.

This interconnectedness was further explored in a recent study published in the Journal of Clinical Investigation that identified a new immune target, suPAR, as a protein that causes kidney disease and atherosclerosis, the most common form of CVD. Unlike traditional approaches to treating CVD such as controlling blood pressure and lowering cholesterol, this breakthrough research offers a new approach to treatment from an entirely different perspective.

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