Scientists at Columbia University have devised an innovative RNA therapy to repair cardiac damage following a heart attack. This therapy uses skeletal muscle to produce a healing molecule called ANP, which activates in the injured heart. In preclinical animal trials, a single injection reduced scarring and enhanced heart function. The treatment remains effective even weeks after the injury.
Ke Cheng, a professor of biomedical engineering at Columbia and lead author, explains that newborn hearts naturally produce more ANP after an attack, but adult hearts cannot. His team’s therapy mimics this process, delivering a 'sleeping' version of the repair protein through specialized RNA injections into limbs.
This inactive form travels safely through the bloodstream until it encounters the heart, where it becomes activated by a specific enzyme to repair damaged areas. The therapy's efficacy extends over four weeks and could offer benefits to patients who don’t receive immediate treatment.
Though promising, the treatment requires further testing in humans due to differences in heart complexity compared to animal subjects.