A new potential treatment for ischemic stroke
What is it about?
Stroke is the second leading cause of death globally. Ischemic stroke, the most common subtype, occurs when a blood vessel is blocked or occluded for a period of time. Current treatments for ischemic stroke are limited to blood-clot-degrading drugs or physical clot removal, which have a limited time window of effectiveness. In our study, we directly compared two promising investigational therapeutic approaches, which use recombinant proteins FGF18 and GDF11. Our findings demonstrate that, in an animal model of ischemic stroke, FGF18 appears potentially effective at increasing survival and restoring motor and brain function (cognition). Based on the study results, we believe that this therapeutic activity is driven by protection of nerve cells and improvement in their function following injury.
Why is it important?
The study findings are important because stroke is a highly debilitating pathology that affects millions of people worldwide. Preclinical models can help direct future clinical research that may eventually lead to the development of new therapeutic interventions. Finally, mechanistic insights are particularly valuable as they offer the potential to better understand the disease and design new interventions that target alternative treatment pathways.