Close X
Thursday, November 28, 2024
ADVT 
Health

Treatment of muscular dystrophy possible

Darpan News Desk IANS, 08 Sep, 2014 08:33 AM
    In what could lead to the discovery of drugs to treat muscle weakening diseases such as muscular dystrophy, researchers have discovered a signalling pathway responsible for reducing aged stem cells' ability to repair muscle.
     
    As people age, stem cells gradually lose their capacity to repair damage, even from normal wear and tear.
     
    As muscle stem cells age, their reduced function is a result of a progressive increase in the activation of a specific signalling pathway that transmits information to a cell from the surrounding tissue.
     
    The particular culprit identified by the researchers is called the JAK/STAT signalling pathway.
     
    "What is really exciting to our team is that when we used specific drugs to inhibit the JAK/STAT pathway, the muscle stem cells in old animals behaved the same as those found in young animals," said Michael Rudnicki, a professor from the University of Ottawa in Canada.
     
    "These inhibitors increased the older animals' ability to repair injured muscle and to build new tissue," Rudnicki added.
     
    With this discovery, the researchers are exploring the therapeutic possibilities of drugs to treat muscular dystrophy and such other muscle weakening diseases.
     
    The drugs used in this study are commonly used for chemotherapy and the team is now looking for less toxic molecules that would have the same effect.
     
    The findings appeared online in the journal Nature Medicine.

    MORE Health ARTICLES

    Sweetened beverages can impair memory

    Sweetened beverages can impair memory
    Limit your sugar-sweetened beverage intake if you are a teenager. An alarming study shows that daily consumption of beverages can impair your ability to learn and remember...

    Sweetened beverages can impair memory

    Brain 'switch' controlling blood sugar levels discovered

    Brain 'switch' controlling blood sugar levels discovered
    Researchers have identified the mechanism in the brain that is key to sensing glucose levels in the blood, linking it to both type 1 and type 2 diabetes....

    Brain 'switch' controlling blood sugar levels discovered

    Eye-wearable device can spot diabetes-related condition

    Eye-wearable device can spot diabetes-related condition
    Inspired by Google Glass, researchers have now developed a wearable eye-monitoring device that could lead to early detection of a common diabetes-related...

    Eye-wearable device can spot diabetes-related condition

    Simple blood test can now detect cancer

    Simple blood test can now detect cancer
    In a first, British researchers have devised a simple blood test that can be used to diagnose whether people have cancer or not...

    Simple blood test can now detect cancer

    Effective oral contraceptives for obese women soon

    Effective oral contraceptives for obese women soon
    Obese women who use oral contraceptives to prevent pregnancy can now heave a sigh of relief as researchers have identified ways to make birth control pills more effective....

    Effective oral contraceptives for obese women soon

    Green spaces impact birth weight positively

    Green spaces impact birth weight positively
    Where expecting mothers live can also have a bearing on the birth weight of their babies as researchers have found that mothers who live near green spaces deliver...

    Green spaces impact birth weight positively