Immune cell target that may prevent or delay heart failure after pressure overload

(University of Alabama at Birmingham) Researchers have identified a therapeutic target to prevent or delay heart failure from pressure overload of the heart, and a potential biomarker for the same. They say their animal studies carry clinical and translational potential. Mouse-model experiments showed that preventing the early infiltration of CCR2+ macrophages into the heart, after experimental pressure overload, significantly lessened the heart's enlargement and reduced pumping ability that leads to later heart failure.
Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health - Category: International Medicine & Public Health Source Type: news