Category Archives: Medical

Health, Medical, Research, Science

An alternative to statins for those at risk of heart disease…

ALN-PCS CUTS ‘BAD’ CHOLESTEROL

For those patients unable to take statins, a new type of cholesterol-lowering drug could help those at risk of heart disease, new research has revealed.

The treatment referred to as ‘ALN-PCS’ cuts the levels of ‘bad’ cholesterol by more than half – a reduction similar to statins.

Experimental findings from the first tests in humans do show the potential benefits of an agent that works in a different way to statins. The drug blocks production of a protein that destroys receptors that normally clear harmful LDL cholesterol from the bloodstream.

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The first trial has involved 32 volunteers with high LDL (or ‘bad ‘cholesterol). People from this group were then randomly assigned to receive either an injection of ALN-PCS or a saline placebo.

A single dose of the drug cut LDL levels by as much as 57 per cent. The research findings have been published in the medical journal, The Lancet. The researchers suggest that the bigger the dose, the greater reduction in LDL.

Kevin Fitzgerald, a trial investigator from Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, was integral to developing the new treatment. He says the drug – which would likely be developed in tablet form – could be used for the one in five heart disease patients intolerant or resistant to statins, or even to enhance their effects.

ALN-PCS works by blocking the production of the cholesterol regulator PCSK9 – a protein that destroys low-density lipoprotein (LDL) receptors that normally clear LDL cholesterol from the blood.

Genetic research has shown previously that mutations’ resulting in a rise in PCSK9 activity does lead to a major increase in LDL cholesterol. This contributes to the build-up of plaque inside blood vessels, while genetic variants that cause a reduction in PCSK9 activity are known to lower cholesterol dramatically.

The 32 volunteers selected for the trial, aged between 18 and 65 years old, were deemed to have raised cholesterol levels ranging from between mild to moderate. The volunteers were randomly assigned to receive injections containing one of six doses of ALN-PCS, or saline.

For those given the highest dose of ALN-PCS, LDL cholesterol dropped up to 57 per cent – with an average of 40 per cent overall – compared with the results from those who had taken the saline placebo.

Professor Peter Weissberg is medical director at the British Heart Foundation. He said:

… People with extremely high cholesterol are at increased risk of a heart attack and this approach could offer new hope for those who are resistant to statins.

… These initial results add to growing evidence that blocking the action of a certain protein can dramatically lower ‘bad’ LDL cholesterol.

… More research is now needed to confirm this approach is both safe and effective at preventing heart attacks in the long term before it becomes widely available.

According to further research in the United States, statins may also help keep the mouth as well as the heart healthy. Significantly reduced levels of inflammation associated with gum disease were found in patients taking statin pills for heart conditions.

Dr Ahmed Tawakol, the study leader, and from the Harvard Medical School, said gum and heart disease were often ‘co-existing inflammatory conditions’ and that their chemical biologies ‘may be intertwined’.

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Britain, Health, Medical, Research, Science

‘Teardrop’ MRI test for diagnosing Parkinson’s disease…

A BREAKTHROUGH DISCOVERY

Scientists are developing a ‘teardrop’ test that could help identify people in the early stages of Parkinson’s disease.

Powerful MRI scans reveal that patients with the disease do not have a distinctive teardrop mark in their brains – something observed in healthy people.

The discovery could help doctors to diagnose the degenerative brain disorder and track its progress.

Approximately 127,000 Britons, mostly aged 60 and over, are known to have Parkinson’s.

The condition destroys brain cells producing the chemical messenger dopamine in the part of the brain that controls movement. The disease can also cause memory loss.

Researchers at Nottingham University and Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust believe they have found a biological marker that shows the presence of the disease in the brain.

Using imaging techniques, they compared the brains of Parkinson’s patients with those of healthy people, focusing on nigrosomes, clusters of dopamine-rich cells in part of the brain.

The findings, first published in the journal Neurology, showed that a telltale teardrop mark in the brains of healthy people was missing in Parkinson’s sufferers.

Professor Penny Gowland, who was involved in the study, called it ‘a breakthrough discovery’.

Researchers plan to develop a test that could be adapted to standard MRI scans.

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Health, Medical, Research, Science

Scientists say that taking garlic ‘pills’ can help reduce blood pressure…

ALLEVIATING HYPERTENSION

Scientists have claimed that taking garlic could help to cut blood pressure by 10 per cent – but only if it is taken in the form of tablets.

Twelve weeks of treatment with garlic tablets led to a ‘significant’ cut in blood pressure, slashing the risk of a heart attack or stroke, according to a review of evidence.

Researchers claim those with hypertension or high blood pressure could control their condition better by adding garlic to conventional medicine.

The review of 21 studies on humans found supplements of dried garlic containing a guaranteed dose of the active ingredient allicin consistently led to cuts in blood pressure.

But eating the real thing would not have the same effect, the review concludes.

Although allicin is produced when raw garlic is crushed, much of it is destroyed during cooking. The study, written by nutritionist Dr Pamela Mason, was first published in the journal Complete Nutrition.

Other nutritional experts have said that there was some evidence garlic may use the same mechanism as drugs called ACE inhibitors to lower blood pressure.

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