This is rather appalling that they have only identified one out of five causes of the neuronal cascade of death. Don't they read stroke research at all? Do they really know which one it is? Don't we at least have common naming standards for stroke problems?
1. glutamate poisoning
2. excitotoxicity
3. Capillaries that don't open due to pericytes
4. Inflammatory action leaking through the blood brain barrier.
5. Lysosomal Membrane Permeabilization as a Key Player in Brain Ischemic Cell Death:
http://www.alphagalileo.org/ViewItem.aspx?ItemId=147632&CultureCode=en
Researchers have discovered a mechanism linked to the brain damage
often suffered by stroke victims—and are now searching for drugs to
block it.
Strokes happen when the blood supply to part of the brain is cut off
but much of the harm to survivors’ memory and other cognitive function
is often actually caused by “oxidative stress” in the hours and days
after the blood supply resumes.
A team from the University of Leeds and Zhejiang University in China
studied this second phase of damage in laboratory mice and found a
mechanism in neurons that, if removed, reduced the damage to brain
function.
Co-author Dr Lin-Hua Jiang, of the University of Leeds’ School of
Biomedical Sciences, said: “Until now, much of the drug research has
been focussing on the direct damage caused by the loss of blood flow,
but this phase can be hard to target. The patient may not even be in the
ambulance when it is happening. We have found a mechanism that is
linked to the next phase of damage that will often be underway after
patients have been admitted to hospital.”
The study, published in the journal Cell Death and Disease and
supported by a strategic partnership between the University of Leeds and
Zhejiang University, looked at the damage caused by the excessive
production of chemicals called “reactive oxygen species” in brain
tissues immediately after blood supply is re-established. In a healthy
brain, there are very low levels of reactive oxygen species, but the
quantity dramatically increases after a stroke to levels that are
harmful to neurons.
Dr Jiang said: “We identified an ‘ion channel’ in the membranes of
neurons, called TRPM2, which is switched on in the presence of the
reactive oxygen species. Basically, an ion channel is a door in the
membrane of a cell that allows it to communicate with the outside world—
TRPM2 opens when the harmful levels of reactive oxygen species are
present and we found that removing it significantly reduced neuronal
cell damage.”
The researchers compared the effects of strokes on mice with TRPM2 with a transgenic strain without it.
“In the mice in which the TRPM2 channel does not function, the
reactive oxygen species are still produced but the neurons are very much
protected. The neuronal death is significantly reduced. More
importantly, we observed a significant difference in brain function,
with the protected mice demonstrating significantly superior memory in
lab tests,” Dr Jiang said.
“This study has pinpointed a very promising drug target. We are now
screening a large chemical library to find ways of effectively
inhibiting this channel. Our ongoing research using animal models is
testing whether blockage of this channel can offer protection again
brain damage and cognitive dysfunction in stroke patients,” Dr Jiang
said.
Use the labels in the right column to find what you want. Or you can go thru them one by one, there are only 29,286 posts. Searching is done in the search box in upper left corner. I blog on anything to do with stroke. DO NOT DO ANYTHING SUGGESTED HERE AS I AM NOT MEDICALLY TRAINED, YOUR DOCTOR IS, LISTEN TO THEM. BUT I BET THEY DON'T KNOW HOW TO GET YOU 100% RECOVERED. I DON'T EITHER BUT HAVE PLENTY OF QUESTIONS FOR YOUR DOCTOR TO ANSWER.
Changing stroke rehab and research worldwide now.Time is Brain! trillions and trillions of neurons that DIE each day because there are NO effective hyperacute therapies besides tPA(only 12% effective). I have 523 posts on hyperacute therapy, enough for researchers to spend decades proving them out. These are my personal ideas and blog on stroke rehabilitation and stroke research. Do not attempt any of these without checking with your medical provider. Unless you join me in agitating, when you need these therapies they won't be there.
I expect to be dead when scientists finally understand and can influence this very complex chemical process that follows a stroke. At least doctors no longer say just take him/her home and love him/her.
ReplyDeleteTrue, I'll be dead before this will help anybody.
DeleteBut I have to point out a strategy/plan that if followed will lead to a solutionrather than the do-nothings we have today in the stroke world.