Gene Therapy Promotes New Blood Vessel Growth in Heart

Baylor College of Medicine and the Houston VA Medical Center recently began testing a new gene therapy designed to stimulate the growth of new blood vessels in the heart.

Both institutions in Houston join a small group of medical facilities nationwide that will inject a blood vessel growth factor into the coronary arteries of symptomatic patients who are not candidates for surgery or angioplasty.

The first injections occurred July 11 and 12 at the Houston VA Medical Center’s catheterization laboratory.

"The objective of this gene therapy is to promote and enhance angiogenesis, a natural biological process in which the human body grows new blood vessels to increase the flow of blood to sustain healthy tissue," said principal investigator Glenn N. Levine, M.D., Baylor assistant professor of medicine and director of the VA center’s cardiac catheterization laboratory.

The Baylor study, funded by New Jersey- and California-based Berlex Laboratories, is intended to evaluate the safety and efficacy of a nonsurgical gene therapy product in patients with stable exertional angina due to coronary artery disease.

Co-investigator Alvin Blaustein, M.D., Baylor associate professor of medicine and chief of cardiology at the VA center, said the new therapy is not intended to replace therapies such as bypass surgery or angioplasty, but may be suitable for patients who cannot receive those treatments.

Some patients, Blaustein said, are beyond help with medication but the blockage of blood flow to their heart is too diffuse to target any particular artery for angioplasty and stenting, or surgery.

The American Heart Association reports that nearly 12 million Americans suffer from coronary artery disease. The condition is caused by atherosclerosis, in which one or more of the coronary arteries supplying blood to the heart becomes partially or wholly blocked, usually due to buildup of fatty plaque and cholesterol deposits. More than half these patients experience a form of chest pain known as angina.

– Bobby Gruner, Houston VA Medical Center and John Tyler, Baylor College of Medicine

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©2006 Texas Medical Center

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