Hedgehog improves heart function, blood flow.

2003 DEC 8 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Curis, Inc., (CRIS) reported that injection of a gene encoding the Hedgehog protein results in improved cardiac function and increased blood flow to the heart in a model of myocardial ischemia.

Myocardial ischemia, the interruption of blood flow and oxygen to heart muscle, is the leading cause of heart attacks. The data were presented at the annual Scientific Sessions of the American Heart Association being held in Orlando, Florida.

Kengo Kusano, the first author of the paper entitled "Sonic Hedgehog Gene Therapy in Myocardial Ischemia: Transient Reconstitution of Embryonic Signaling Preserves Cardiac Function," will compete as a finalist for the Melvin L. Marcus Young Investigator Award in Cardiovascular Science that is awarded annually at the conference.

The research for the study was performed in the laboratory of Douglas Losordo in the Division of Cardiovascular Research at the St. Elizabeth's Medical Center of Boston, Massachusetts. The authors conclude that administration of Hedgehog after a heart attack may have a significant advantage in promoting recovery in patients with acute myocardial ischemia by stimulating new blood vessel growth and reducing fibrosis.

Curis is developing drug candidates that activate the Hedgehog signaling pathway for the treatment of cardiovascular disease and other disorders. The National Institutes of Health estimates that approximately one million patients visit the hospital each year with some type of myocardial ischemia as their principal diagnosis.

Lee Rubin, Curis' chief scientific officer, said, "Previous studies have demonstrated that Hedgehog protein can stimulate formation of new blood vessels and promote the recovery of skeletal muscle that has an insufficient blood supply. This new report now extends those observations to heart muscle and expands our understanding of the ways in which Hedgehog can be administered in order to promote the development of new blood vessels and thus increase muscle recovery."

Daniel Passeri, Curis' president and CEO, stated, "We believe that cardiovascular disease represents a significant new therapeutic direction for Curis. We are grateful for the opportunity to interact with Losordo and his colleagues as we begin to investigate this potential indication for Curis' drug development technologies."

This article was prepared by Cardiovascular Week editors from staff and other reports.