Thyroid hormones are responsible for heart failure

Alterations of this type generate inability of the heart to pump enough blood to the body, which would affect 1% of the adult population.

Can reverse heart failure in some patients, is one of those challenges that leads the Dr. Karl Weber, Director of the Division of cardiovascular diseases, the u. Tennessee, EE. UU. The expert, who visited our country a few days ago, has made several findings on factors hormone involved in this disease, affecting 1% of the adult population in our country, generating an inability of the heart to pump enough blood to the body, which in turn, It causes damage to this body and loss of functionality.

"Heart failure is an overriding world problem, and the mortality rate associated with this condition is very considerable. With this disease cardiac contractility decreases, becoming weaker. My research focuses on understanding why the heart fails and if anything it is possible to remedy this disorder. The dogma States that the phenomenon cannot be reversed, "but our studies suggest that the contractility itself can be rescued", the specialist explained. The statements is carried out during seminar organized by scientists of the Center advanced of diseases chronic, ACCDiS , and that was held at the Faculty of chemistry and pharmacy, University of Chile.

According to the researcher, This improvement in contractility may occur at the cellular level and sub cellular and in patients with a diagnosis of left ventricular assist and recovery in a group of young people has also been observed.

Dr. Weber is also part of the International Committee that is evaluating which make ACCDiS, Commission also involving Dr. Nelson Durán, researcher of the University Estadual de Campinas-UNICAMP, of Brazil. This last, specialist in nanotechnology, It also held a Conference on their advances in the treatment of bladder and prostate cancer.

Hormonal disturbances and heart failure

American scientist has made discoveries about certain mechanisms and hormonal changes that contribute to intensifying the severity of heart failure, results that were exhibited to the scientists at ACCDiS, centre run by Dr. Sergio Lavandero.

One of these findings concerning an increase in the levels of parathyroid hormone in patients, fact causing hyperparathyroidism. According to said researcher, These hormonal mechanisms are activated by the body to compensate for heart failure. However, This same increase in hormone levels contribute to generate an effect or more harmful in the body.

"The advances presented by Dr. Weber are very interesting. Another point raised is that thyroid hormones T3 and T4, they would also have prominence in the heart failure. Oxidative stress occurs during heart failure, What activates an enzyme of the heart, that in turn destroys the thyroid hormone. Like this, This reduction of the hormone thyroid, It also produces a worsening of the heart box", says Dr. Mario Chiong, ACCDiS scientist.

In this respect, Dr. Weber stressed that the intracellular signaling of thyroid hormone involved in the regulation of the expression of contractile protein of striated muscle cells-cardiac myocytes and structure elongated-, role that could eventually be adapted. Like this, further research in this field is essential for Karl Weber, contributing to "generate promising results at the level of cardiac function".

Expert in cardiac pathologies

Dr. Weber has explored the heart for more than thirty years, Besides being one of the pioneers in determining the mechanisms responsible for cardiac fibrosis, condition characterized by an increase in the formation of fibrils of collagen in the tissue, due to an inflammatory process, atrophy, among other causes. In the context of this disease and heart failure, a major contribution is his research on the role of the hormone aldosterone, studies that have been developed during the last decade, along with other researchers.

The experts described events that linked the aldosterone with problems cardiovascular, especially associated with fibrosis. In addition, they conducted studies with aldosterone receptor antagonists for preventing cardiac fibrosis, fact that proved to be very important in the design of international clinical studies (RALES and EPHESUS), where is demonstrated the effectiveness of these tools in the treatment of patients with failure heart. In fact, now it is recognized that the administration of these drugs such as spironolactone, in patients with failure chronic, "reduces mortality in at least one 10%", adds Dr. Mario Chiong.

Centre of excellence

In ACCDiS, chronic diseases are a focus of attention for more than 200 researchers, belonging to the universities of Chile and Católica de Chile. Example of this happening in the laboratories of the Dres. Sergio Lavandero and Pablo Castro, He studied the effect of metabolism in the genesis and progression of cardiovascular disease.

Particularly, Dr. Castro (UC) It carries out research to help early diagnosis of heart failure, advances that also consider the validation of new biomarkers such as Galectina 3, a protein that may be involved in the metabolic and morphological changes of the heart.