Md. Researchers reported that a developmental drug being has been shown to improve heart function in animal models of heart attack. The drug has been studied at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center and the study was presented at the annual meeting of the Pediatric Academic Societies. The drug, a synthetic compound developed by MetaPhore Pharmaceuticals in St. Louis, removes free radicals from injured heart tissues.
Free radicals can cause extensive damage to the heart following a heart attack.
In laboratory rats, the drug has been shown to be highly protective against injury from free radicals, according to R. Mark Payne, associate professor of pediatric cardiology at Wake Forest University School of Medicine and principal investigator of the study. The early animal studies are very positive, but more animal studies need to be completed. These data support our hypothesis that tissue can be protected during a heart attack, with potentially improved cardiac function. When a person has a heart attack, blood flow to the heart and other organs is restricted. Doctors must quickly reestablish blood flow by opening up the damaged blood vessels, providing needed blood to the heart and other organs in the body.