A hope from Italian research
A drug that can block a genetic defect that causes arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy It has successfully passed laboratory tests and is now about to move to animal testing, before moving on to human trials. The good news, published in the prestigious scientific journal Cell Stem Cell, was announced by two Italian researchers: Alessandra Rampazzo, of the Department of Biology of the University of Padua, and Fabio rossi, founding scientist of the Rossi Laboratory at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada.
How arrhythmogenic cardiomyopathy arises and why it causes arrhythmias
The long-distance collaboration between the two researchers led to the development of a drug capable of blocking the formation of fibrosis, the areas where heart cells are replaced by fibrous tissue. This process is caused by alterations in the defective proteins that bind cells together. The resulting fibrous scars disrupt the normal conduction of electrical impulses and are the cause of arrhythmias and, in the most severe cases, cardiac arrest due to tachycardia or ventricular fibrillation.
These arrhythmias primarily affect young patients, particularly those who engage in intense sports. To date, there is no effective therapy capable of preventing the onset and progressive worsening of this disease, which is aggravated by intense physical activity, both during training and competition.
The death of young footballers and many other sportsmen, such as Piermario Morosini of Livorno, Anthony Gate, champion of Seville, and Davide Astori, could have been prevented only through the implantation of an implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) and the suspension of competitive sports activity.
In patients with arrhythmogenic cardiomyopathy who present with severe recurrent arrhythmias, it may also be useful to proceed with the ablation of the fibro-adipose tissue in the area where the arrhythmias originate, identified through an electrophysiological study. However, patients with particularly severe arrhythmic manifestations that are resistant to therapy are very rare, requiring ablation. heart transplant.
Therapies today, a possible cure tomorrow
The encouraging results of the in vitro testing of the drug give hope that the two researchers are on the right track towards a potential therapy capable of modifying the course of this serious genetic disease in the future.
