Drugs That Shift Cell's Energy Find New Purpose – Yahoo! News
Drugs That Shift Cell's Energy Find New Purpose – Yahoo! News
MONDAY, Feb. 15 (HealthDay News) — Researchers have identified several
drugs that can change the way cells convert nutrients into energy, and
they could potentially be used to treat heart attack, stroke and other
conditions.
“Shifts in cells' energy production pathways take place naturally
during development and in response to demanding activities — like
sprinting versus long-distance running. They are also known to be involved
in several disease states,” study leader Dr. Vamsi Mootha, of the Center
for Human Genetic Research at Massachusetts General Hospital, said in a
news release from the hospital.
“We wanted to identify compounds that can safely induce this shift —
those that have previously been discovered are too toxic — and
investigate their therapeutic potential in animal models,” Mootha
said.
Mootha and colleagues screened almost 3,700 compounds and pinpointed
several U.S. Food and Drug Administration-approved drugs — including an
over-the-counter anti-nausea drug — that can shift cellular energy.
The study was published Feb. 14 online in the journal Nature
Biotechnology.
The findings may eventually lead to new treatments for some serious
health problems, but much more research is needed, the researchers
noted.
“Before we can think about human studies, we need to do rigorous animal
testing to determine optimal, safe dosing regimens and learn more about
how [these] drugs work,” said Mootha, an assistant professor of systems
biology at Harvard Medical School.
More information
The American Heart Association outlines heart attack treatments.
Written by Julie Eley admin@weightlosstipsthatworkfast.com
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