Carter Sinclair News Treating Traumas: Discovery By OMRF Scientists

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(Free-Press-Release.com) October 26, 2009 -- Carter Sinclair News: A discovery by scientists at the Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation could help save lives threatened by traumatic injuries like those sustained in car crashes or on the battlefield. The work also holds potential for treating severe infectious diseases and diabetes.

In a paper published online in the advance edition of the scientific journal Nature Medicine, OMRF researcher Charles Esmon, Ph.D., with co-authors Florea Lupu, Ph.D., and Jun Xu, Ph.D., has cast new light on how proteins called histones can enter the bloodstream and begin to kill the lining of blood vessels, resulting in uncontrolled internal bleeding. Building on this work, Esmon and a team of collaborators have discovered an antibody that could counter this deadly process.
Inside the cells, histones perform an important function, keeping DNA coiled and compressed inside the nucleus. But the OMRF researchers found that when cells become damaged and burst - either through injury, infection or diseases such as diabetes - histones can enter the bloodstream and begin to kill the lining of blood vessels. This results in uncontrolled internal bleeding and fluid build-up in the tissues, which are life-threatening.

Working with Temple University's Marc Monestier, M.D., Ph.D., the group discovered antibodies (pathogen-fighting proteins produced by the body's immune system) that can block the histones' ability to kill. "When a patient is suffering from severe bleeds, these antibodies could prevent multi-organ failure," said Esmon, who is a member of the National Academy of Sciences.

The researchers have already tested the antibodies in pre-clinical trials, where they showed promising results and no adverse effects. A potential future step, said Esmon, would be human trials.

The work, said Prescott, also helps lay a foundation for future research. "These findings offer some clues as to why people suffering from one traumatic injury often experience a catastrophic 'cascade' of secondary traumatic events," he said. "If we can figure out how to control the initial injury, perhaps that will stop the domino effect that so often follows."

Esmon's research has already yielded two FDA-approved drugs. His work with OMRF researcher Fletcher Taylor, M.D., led to the creation of Xigris, a treatment for severe sepsis. And with his wife and colleague, Naomi Esmon, Ph.D., he helped create Ceprotin, a therapeutic for patients suffering from a life-threatening protein deficiency.

The current research was made possible by support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute.

OMRF is an independent, nonprofit biomedical research institute dedicated to understanding and developing more effective treatments for human diseases. Chartered in 1946, its scientists focus on such critical research areas as Alzheimer's disease, cancer, lupus and cardiovascular disease.

Source: Greg Elwell, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation. View drug information on Xigris.

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