Arushi Bidhuri
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Written By: Arushi Bidhuri | Updated : May 3, 2022 3:31 PM IST
Cardiovascular disease is a term used for medical conditions affecting the heart or blood vessels. It's usually linked to fatty deposits in the arteries (atherosclerosis) and an elevated risk of blood clots. Heart diseases are one of the biggest killers in the world that claims about 18 million lives a year.
Treatment of heart diseases usually includes making lifestyle changes like eating low fat and low sodium diet, physical exercise and more. But a new study has found that COVID-19 vaccines may help cure the disease.
According to the European Society of Cardiology, the coronavirus vaccine strengthens the immune system by delivering microscopic fat particles (or lipids) into the body's cells. Experiments on mice revealed that a procedure identical to the one used to manufacture the COVID jab helped the organ mend itself after a heart attack. The technique is known as mRNA delivery, and the authors of the study declare it a "game-changer" in medicine. They believe it has the potential to treat a wide range of diseases and could possibly lead to the development of a "superhuman" vaccination in the future.
The researchers of the study successfully delivered the mRNA to the muscle of the mice using lipid nanoparticles. During open chest surgery under general anaesthesia, they also injected several formulations into the walls of the hearts of mice. After 24 hours, their investigation revealed that it had successfully reached the cardiac cells to find the location of mRNA delivery. The team found that the liver and spleen cells contained the highest quantities.
Vaccines aid in the prevention of infection by preparing the body to combat foreign invaders (such as bacteria, viruses, or other pathogens). Vaccines all deliver a harmless bit of a specific microbe or virus into the body, eliciting an immune reaction. Most vaccines contain germs or viruses that have been weakened or killed. However, instead of using a portion of a bacteria or virus, scientists have devised a new sort of vaccination that uses a molecule called messenger RNA (mRNA). Messenger RNA is a form of RNA required for protein synthesis. The information in genes is used by mRNA to build a blueprint for producing proteins in cells.
The single-strand molecule messenger ribonucleic acid, or mRNA, transports genetic code from DNA to a cell's protein-making machinery. The vaccine urges cells to produce spike protein on their surface to simulate coronavirus. Antibodies produced as a result then protect the patient against infection in the future.
Once inside our cells, viruses release their own RNA, which causes hijacked cells to vomit out copies of the virus in the form of viral proteins, which impair the immune system. Traditional vaccinations function by injecting antigens, which are inactive viral proteins. They boost the immune system's ability to recognise the virus when it resurfaces. The mRNA vaccines, on the other hand, function by tricking the body into producing antibodies by utilising the antigen's genetic sequence or "coding." Experts say that the production of mRNA vaccines is safer, faster, and less expensive.
