Scientists claim to have produced an antibody that reduces the scarring produced in the heart and brain following a heart attack by more than 60 percent. This scarring can cause as much as 80 percent of the permanent damage caused by a heart attack or stroke. The research has been tested on animals, and human trials are expected to begin within two years.
According to the Telegraph:
“… [T]he treatment could have even more of an effect than statins, the cholesterol lowering drugs … Most deaths from heart disease are caused by a heart attack.”
Researchers are also working on creating a vaccine to treat addictions, which work by blocking addictive substances from reaching your brain. In the event a vaccinated addict relapses and takes a drug such as cocaine, the vaccine would make it so no pleasure was experienced as a result.
The vaccine triggers your body to create antibodies that soak up drugs such as nicotine, cocaine and heroin “like a sponge,” preventing them from crossing the blood-brain barrier, according to researchers. However, so far trials have been coming up short with the experimental vaccines failing to outperform placebos.
The Wall Street Journal reports:
“It could be years, if ever, before any vaccines to treat addiction reach the market. Failures have so far outnumbered successes, and big pharmaceutical companies haven’t lent their research muscle to vaccines for illegal drugs.”
