Cold-activated drug unveiled
Monday April 12th, 2010
Scientists have developed a drug that is only activated in cold temperatures, it has been announced.
The drug has been developed for use during a "freezing" procedure, which is used to protect critically ill patients from harm.
The procedure, known as therapeutic hypothermia, creates a risk of blood clots forming - so Australian scientists say they have now developed a drug that can be used to counteract this.
The discovery was unveiled at the American Heart Association's Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis and Vascular Biology conference at the weekend.
The drug works at 22C - 71.6F - but stops working when the body reaches a normal temperature of 37C - 98.6F.
So far it has been tested on blood samples in the laboratory.
Hypothermia has been used to help heart surgery for about 50 years and since 2002 has been recommended as a way of helping some patients who suffer heart attack.
Researcher Dr Karlheinz Peter, of Baker IDI Heart & Diabetes Institute in Melbourne, Australia, said: "We used biotechnology to create a modern intelligent drug.
"This drug is tailored for preventing clots during therapeutic hypothermia and for minimising bleeding problems especially after rewarming."
Tags: A&E | Australia | Heart Health | North America | Pharmaceuticals
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