Study Might Lead to New Treatment for ARDS
Posted on: Tuesday, 1 July 2008, 12:00 CDT
U.S. medical scientists say they've made a discovery that might lead to a new therapeutic target for acute respiratory distress syndrome, or ARDS.
In ARDS, the lungs become swollen with water and protein, and breathing becomes impossible, leading to death in 30 percent to 40 percent of cases. There is no effective treatment.
University of Illinois-Chicago researchers said it has previously been shown an enzyme called non-muscle myosin light-chain kinase, or MYLK, plays a pivotal role in the disruption of the endothelial barrier -- a single thin layer of cells that line blood vessels, preventing water and protein from accumulating in tissues.
But in the new study, the scientists discovered MYLK is essential to the movement of neutrophils through the endothelial barrier. It unleashes a cascade of molecular events inside the neutrophil that changes the cell's shape, which is necessary for adhesion and migration.
The finding of a novel pathway might lead to new treatment of the deadly disease, the scientists said.
The research that included Professor Asrar Malik and Assistant Professor Jingsong Xu is to be published later this year in the journal Nature Immunology.
Source: United Press International
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User Comments (1)
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Posted by mhmd sabry on 07/16/2008, 12:07 good article |
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