Heart Disease is the major cause of death nowadays, and scientists have come across with a clear life-saving cure for heart-attack victims from a very unexpected source i.e the venom of one of the World’s Deadliest Spiders.
It’s very uneven to think about, but it’s proven that with its lethal nature, it also has some benefits. In the previous analysis, it was discovered that venom could reduce pain without causing unfavorable side effects.
Now, a new discovery from Australia’s University of Queensland specifies that the venom of Fraser Island (K’gari) funnel-web spider is helpful in the prevention of damage caused by a heart attack. It’s also helpful in stretching the life of donor’s hearts.
“What it is doing is curing the death of heart muscle cells”, says lead researcher, Glenn King.
University of Queensland researchers in July 2019, found a molecule in the venom of a deadly spider that is able to beat brain damage when one is suffering from a stroke. Researchers discovered that the molecule is useful in the protection of the heart from strokes. Further, they decided to do an experiment to check, Is it also working for ischemic strokes in the heart? And found that it did indeed.
“After a heart attack, blood flowing to the heart is reduced, resulting in a shortage of oxygen to heart muscle”, statement of a research team lead Dr. Nathan Palpant. “Shortage of oxygen causes the cell environment to become acidic, which further combines to send a message for heart cells to die.”
The remedy discovered from the spider’s venom helps to stop this “death signal” from the heart in the succeeding attack, which is revolutionary.
“For decades, no one has been able to found a drug that could stop this death signal in heart cells, which is one of the reasons for heart diseases as a chief cause of deaths in the World” Palpant added.
The drug candidate is “Hi1a“, a protein. Scientists have tested this using beating human heart cells to reveal heart attack stresses. They see that Hi1a blocks acid-sensing ions directing in the heart and is successful in the prevention of death signals. Further, Hi1a is also useful in extending the lifespan of organ transplants.
“The survival of heart cells is essential in heart transplant– managing hearts with the protein Hila and decreasing cell deaths will finally increase how far the heart can be transported and improve the likelihood of a prosperous transplant”, concluded professor MacDonald, senior cardiologist in Sydney’s St Vincent’s Hospital.