Turning off one protein may help prevent heart failure, research claims

Turning off the MARK4 protein in the heart muscle can prevent heart failure in people who have had a heart attack, said experts from the University of Cambridge.

According to Medical Express, the experts found that MARK4 levels are usually elevated in the hearts of mice after a heart attack. When scientists compared mice with and without MARK4 in the heart, they found that hearts without protein pumped blood 57% better. This effect manifested itself 24 hours after the heart attack and persisted throughout the observation period of four weeks.

Analysis showed that MARK4 tunes the structural network of microtubules within the heart muscle cell. This network is connected to an element that causes the cells of the heart muscle to contract and relax. When MARK4 levels were elevated after a heart attack, the microtubules became firmly anchored to the contractile apparatus, causing more resistance and interfering with the normal functioning of the system.

As the MARK4 levels decreased, the microtubules became loosely anchored, which facilitated the contraction and relaxation of the heart. After a heart attack, the heart muscle cells of mice without MARK4 increased the rate of contraction by 42% and the rate of relaxation by 47% compared to the cells in which the MARK4 protein was present. The cells without protein were like healthy heart muscle cells, the scientists said.

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