Good idea Mur but also take your Calcium.
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
February 28, 2003
Washington - In a study that could lead to new treatments for congestive heart failure, researchers have shown that an abnormal form of a protein can be a fundamental cause.
Earlier studies in animals had suggested that the protein phospholamban, or PLN, played a key role. Now, by studying four generations of a family in which the heart disease was common, researchers have pinpointed an abnormal protein molecule as the main cause.
Dr. Christine E. Seidman, a researcher at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute and Harvard Medical School, said the abnormal protein disrupts the calcium cycle in heart muscle and causes the heart to lose its ability to efficiently pump blood.
Calcium causes heart muscle to contract and the protein then helps move the calcium away so muscle tissue can relax between beats. This action, called a calcium pump, is essential for the proper beating of the heart.
Seidman, co-author of a study appearing today in the journal Science, said her study shows that a gene mutation produces an abnormal form of the protein which, in turn, disrupts the calcium pump and causes congestive heart failure.
The discovery may now make it possible to develop a drug that specifically controls the action of the protein or the movement of calcium in and out of the muscles.
Congestive heart failure occurs when infection, heart attack or high blood pressure weakens the heart muscle, lowering its ability to contract and force blood to the lungs and to the rest of the body. The often-fatal disorder affects about 4.7 million Americans, most of them elderly, and costs about $17.8 billion a year for treatment and care.
Copyright © 2003, Newsday, Inc.
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