cardiology
Scientists Make Strides in Understanding Function of Heart’s Helical Band
by andreas on Dec.02, 2008, under cardiology
Researchers from Caltech have created images of the heart’s muscular layer that reveal the role the configuration of those muscles plays in determining how the human heart contracts. It is reportedly the first time that the functionality of the muscle has been fully understood.
The muscular band, which wraps around the inner chambers of the heart in a helix, acts like a twisting highway along which each heart contraction travels. “The heart twists to push blood out the same way you twist a wet towel to wring water out of it,” explains Morteza Gharib, the principal investigator on the study.
More information on the research is available at Science Daily.
Scientists take a step closer to an elixir of youth
by andreas on Nov.20, 2008, under cardiology, general research
Crystal structure of HLA-A*2402 complexed with a telomerase peptide.
Researchers believe boosting the amount of a naturally forming enzyme in the body could prevent cells dying and so lead to extended, healthier, lifespans. The protein telomerase helps maintain the protective caps at the ends of chromosomes which act like the ends of shoelaces and stop them unravelling.
Using Tissue Engineering To Treat Heart Defects
by andreas on Nov.03, 2008, under cardiology
A confocal micrograph depicts a honeycomb scaffold
A new scaffold developed at MIT could be seeded with stem cells or live heart cells to treat heart damage or congenital heart defects. The scaffold would gradually dissolve leaving tissue in its wake. The tissue is expected to be able to replicate the properties of the heart’s own tissue.
According to Lisa E. Freed, a researcher in the Harvard/MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology, the scaffold could be made with custom structural mechanical properties.
A scanning electron micrograph depicts a scaffold for cardiac tissue engineering magnified 100x. Image courtesy of G.C. Engelmayr, Jr.
French Scientists Develop Artificial Heart
by admin on Oct.28, 2008, under cardiology
A photo of the artificial heart.
A team of researchers, led by Dr. Alain Carpentier of the Pierre & Marie Curie University in Paris, have reportedly developed the most-advanced artificial human heart even developed. Said to beat almost like an actual heart, the device provides hope to the thousands of patients in need of a heart transplant or other treatment.
