Scientists at Stanford University-California have discovered a new way to combat heart disease with a new treatment that could actually create new blood vessels in the heart, according to the Guardian.
Angioplasty is a go-to procedure for those with blocked arteries, but with the discovery of heart cells that can be prodded to create new blood vessels, a more natural corrective procedure could be well on the way.
"Whenever you have a blockage in a coronary artery, the blood supply is cut off, and you need a new supply," said Kristy Red-Horse, one of the research heads for the study. "We want to coax arteries to form and grow around the blocked area."
The pericyte cells cover the blood vessels throughout the heart and could be the key to creating more blood vessels with the proper stimulant, according to NDTV.
"If we want to regenerate diseased hearts, we need to first understand how the heart creates the building blocks of healthy coronary arteries," said Katharina Volz, another lead researcher with the university. "Our study describes step-by-step how coronary arteries develop in the embryonic mouse heart."
The researchers are currently continuing their research on the cells to establish "whether it can be activated or sped up by introducing Notch 3 signaling molecules," according to News Medical.
