Gene therapy boosts mice survival from heart attacks by 17%

The enzyme telomerase repairs cell damage produced by aging, and has been used successfully in therapies to lengthen the life of mice. Now it has been observed that it could also be used to cure illnesses related to the aging process. Researchers at the Spanish National Cancer Research Center (CNIO) have for the first time treated myocardial infarction with telomerase by designing a very innovative strategy: a gene therapy that reactivates the telomerase gene only in the heart of adult mice, thus increasing survival rates in those animals by 17 % following a heart attack.

“We have discovered that following a myocardial infarction, hearts that express telomerase show less heart dilatation, better ventricular function and smaller scars from the heart attack; these cardiac events are associated with an increased survival of 17 % compared to control animals,” they say.

Furthermore, everything points to cardiomyocytes—the cells responsible for heart beating—being regenerated in those hearts with telomerase, a long searched-for goal in post-heart-attack therapy. The regeneration of heart muscle would counter the formation of scars as a consequence of the heart attack, a tough tissue that hinders cardiac function and increases the likelihood of heart failure.

Nature Communications – Telomerase expression confers cardioprotection in the adult mouse heart after acute myocardial infarction

Abstract

Coronary heart disease is one of the main causes of death in the developed world, and treatment success remains modest, with high mortality rates within 1 year after myocardial infarction (MI). Thus, new therapeutic targets and effective treatments are necessary. Short telomeres are risk factors for age-associated diseases, including heart disease. Here we address the potential of telomerase (​Tert) activation in prevention of heart failure after MI in adult mice. We use adeno-associated viruses for cardiac-specific ​Tert expression. We find that upon MI, hearts expressing ​Tert show attenuated cardiac dilation, improved ventricular function and smaller infarct scars concomitant with increased mouse survival by 17% compared with controls. Furthermore, ​Tert treatment results in elongated telomeres, increased numbers of ​Ki67 and pH3-positive cardiomyocytes and a gene expression switch towards a regeneration signature of neonatal mice. Our work suggests telomerase activation could be a therapeutic strategy to prevent heart failure after MI.