Acne Drug Proves Beneficial for Blood Vessels
Cambridge and King’s College London: minocycline (an acne antibiotic) blocks the PARP enzyme and preserves vascular elasticity in atherosclerosis.
Cambridge and King’s College London: minocycline (an acne antibiotic) blocks the PARP enzyme and preserves vascular elasticity in atherosclerosis.
This drug protects against heart attacks and strokes by maintaining the elasticity of blood vessels. It reduces the risk of developing atherosclerosis, which is caused by calcium deposits that narrow the lumen of vessels and make their walls stiffer.
Minocycline (an antibiotic prescribed for acne) blocks the pathway through which calcium accumulates. It has proven its effectiveness against atherosclerosis in rodents. Atherosclerosis was studied by researchers at the University of Cambridge and King’s College London.
Previously, it had been established that the PARP enzyme is involved in DNA repair within cells. However, this enzyme can also work outside cells, playing an important role in maintaining bone hardness. This fact led scientists to the idea of a possible link between the enzyme and the biomineralization of blood vessels. In their latest study, researchers found that PARP enzymes attach to calcium ions and help form larger elements from them. These elements combine inside vessel walls with substances that make the walls elastic.
As a result, calcium elements turn into hard crystals, which reduce the elasticity of vessel walls. Scientists identified six molecules capable of inhibiting PARP enzyme activity. Among them was an old drug — minocycline. It was successfully tested in rodents with chronic heart disease associated with atherosclerosis — the animals’ vessels remained elastic.
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