Heart disease and other conditions related to the heart have been some of the most common reasons for human deaths. Even though mankind has come a long way in terms of medical progress, tackling and detecting such conditions has always proved to be an uphill task. Usually caused by the buildup of fatty deposits, inflammation and plaque on the walls of the blood vessels, heart diseases have become one of the biggest global health crises. But luckily a few researchers from USC Viterbi’s department Biomedical Engineering have stumbled upon something that may be able to help with this cause.
In general, atherosclerosis attacks the coronary arteries and causes blockages due to plaque and can sometimes even cut off the blood flow to the heart through calcification induced ruptures. Moreover, when this condition affects blood vessels that lead to the brain, it can even lead to a stroke.
To help doctors better pinpoint and identify such cases of dangerous plaque buildup by detecting unstable calcifications, the researchers from USC Viterbi got to work and developed a new nanoparticle technology that could ultimately help improve the detection and treatment of heart diseases and strokes.
Of Course there are already several techniques in existence that could help in the detection of the same. But most of them have a catch. For example, angiography, a popular method, involves the use of catheters that are invasive and carry the risk of tissue damage. CT scans, another widely used method, uses ionizing radiation which can cause other negative effects on tissues.
Moreover, these traditional methods are sometimes not accurate enough and can make it difficult for doctors to make precise deductions. The resolution limitations of these devices generally only offer a bird’s eye view of larger calcifications. This may not be sufficient in most cases as firstly, the size of the calcification isn’t the most important factor when determining its danger level and secondly such devices may not be powerful enough to detect smaller microcalcifications that could potentially be life threatening.
For this reason, the research team developed a nanoparticle known as micelle. This particle was designed to stick onto the calcifications and light them up so as to make the detection of smaller blockages that are prone to rupture easier. Moreover, these micelle particles specifically target hydroxyapatite a unique form of calcium present in arteries and atherosclerotic plaques.
The researchers even carried out tests on calcified cells in a dish, with a mouse model of atherosclerosis and also used patient derived artery sample provided by a vascular surgeon. The team observed that the nanoparticles bound themselves to sites of calcification in both the mouse model and the vascular tissues derived from the patients.
The implications of this discovery are wide ranging. In the future, the researchers say that in addition to using these particles to detect blockages, they could even be used for targeted drug delivery. With further research and refinement, this discovery could potentially aid in the treatment of serious heart conditions without harming normal cells and other surrounding organs.