Successful experiments on cardiovascular and diabetes prevention drugs

US researchers have just successfully tested cardiovascular and diabetes prevention drugs in mice. It is expected that this drug will be developed to prevent these two diseases in humans.

The drug is produced by researchers at Harvard University in collaboration with Bristol-Meyers Squibb to prevent a protein needed to bring fat around the body. It is this protein that helps mice fight these diseases.

According to Gokhan Hotamisligil, head of the Genetic Department and complex diseases, belonging to the School of Public Health, "this drug has done a good job." The mice injected with this drug will be immune to diabetes heart disease and metabolic disorders even when they are very fat, have high cholesterol and eat lots of fatty foods.

Fat people have a higher risk of developing diabetes and cardiovascular disease (Photo: randomfatkids).

Hotamisligil's work was published in Nature, based on previous findings in the study of a gene related to diabetes and obesity in mice. They found that mice lacking this gene could resist these diseases.

Hotamisligil said the gene controls the amount of lipid-linked protein called aP2. This protein sticks to the fat in the blood and brings them all over the body, causing many problems.

When we eat fatty foods, these AP2 proteins will cause a series of reactions. They reduce their sensitivity to sugar - reduce the effects of hormone insulin - increase the risk of diabetes - and increase the level of arteriosclerosis - the risk of heart attack.

Researchers cannot change human genes. Therefore, some people have asked the question: 'Since we cannot change human genes, can we do this with chemicals?'.

Hotamisligil collaborated with Dr. Rex Parker, Bristol-Myers Squibb researcher, to produce a drug that can block this protein. That is BMS309403. This is a compound that mimics the gene movement of aP2 gene.

Last year, Harvard researchers found a mutation in this gene in some people. They are people who are less likely to have diabetes and heart disease even though they still eat high-fat foods."We know this is the same thing in the human body and we know this compound can do what genetics does. This really encourages us a lot," he said.

But in the short term, researchers must show that this chemical is not toxic to the human body. This problem requires many more experiments. Not all illnesses can be cured tomorrow.

He added: 'If this compound or a similar compound is confirmed to be safe and effective in the human body, then we will have a great drug.'

TAM HA