Squirrels could hold secret to preventing brain damage for stroke patients

[Swordsmyth]

Researchers in the US have discovered that when squirrels hibernate a protective process occurs in their cells which allows their brain to function with reduced blood flow and oxygen.
When they awaken the animals suffer no ill-effects despite being deprived of essential nutrients.
During an ischemic stroke the blood supply, containing sugar and oxygen, is cut off to the brain, causing cells to die, which often leads to paralysis and speech problems.
Scientists from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) believe that creating a drug which could trigger the same cellular changes of hibernating squirrels could prevent that brain damage.
"If we could only turn on the process hibernators appear to use to protect their brains, we could help protect the brain during a stroke and ultimately help people recover," said first author Joshua Bernstock, a graduate student at NINDS.


Researchers found that a cellular process called SUMOlyation goes into overdrive when squirrels hibernate, protecting their cells. They found that process could be boosted by the enzyme ebselen.
When ebselen was injected into animal brain cells, they stayed alive, even when deprived of blood and oxygen.
Further experiments also showed that ebselen boosted SUMOylation in the brains of healthy mice.

More at: https://www.yahoo.com/news/squirrels...132900640.html

[Dr.3D]

So I wonder how they would get the ebselen boosted during a stroke.

Would they have some kind of computer, give them an injection when it senses the person is having a stroke?

[Brian4Liberty]

So I wonder how they would get the ebselen boosted during a stroke.

Would they have some kind of computer, give them an injection when it senses the person is having a stroke?

Yeah, kind of hard to inject and deliver a drug to protect cells from a lack of blood supply after the blood supply is already cut off.

[navy-vet]

So I wonder how they would get the ebselen boosted during a stroke.

Would they have some kind of computer, give them an injection when it senses the person is having a stroke?

There's a window of about three to four and a half hours following most strokes,
before irreparable brain injury occurs.

[navy-vet]

There are also a number of strokes that occur in patients who are in the Hospital for other problems.

[navy-vet]

That's why they treat strokes like they treat heart attacks now that they have the means to treat most of them. Twenty years ago, they just had to let it run it's course and hope for the best. Then they developed CT scanners, clot busting drugs like TPA etc.

This business reminded me of a technique for lessening damage from severe head injuries we called "caving", where the patient was put into a sort of suspended animation using cold and coma. It is based on the mammalian reflex that has protected the brains of near drowning victims who were submerged in cold water for nearly an hour and recovered without any cognitive impairment.

[XNavyNuke]

Yeah, kind of hard to inject and deliver a drug to protect cells from a lack of blood supply after the blood supply is already cut off.

Which is why there are lots of neuroprotective molecules that have failed in clinical trials. The best therapy is to restore as much blood flow as possible as soon as possible. That is why early adopter cities are buying-into dedicated stroke ambulances. There were two different models in the vendor area of the International Stoke Conference in LA. It's still a struggle to get 12-lead ecgs into ambulances for cardiac cases. I suspect the adoption of these units for neurological emergencies will be even slower. Everything in this country is controlled by a slowly changing, formulaic Medicare reimbursement system. All the major insurance companies follow lockstep.

XNN

[Brian4Liberty]

Which is why there are lots of neuroprotective molecules that have failed in clinical trials. The best therapy is to restore as much blood flow as possible as soon as possible. That is why early adopter cities are buying-into dedicated stroke ambulances. There were two different models in the vendor area of the International Stoke Conference in LA. It's still a struggle to get 12-lead ecgs into ambulances for cardiac cases. I suspect the adoption of these units for neurological emergencies will be even slower. Everything in this country is controlled by a slowly changing, formulaic Medicare reimbursement system. All the major insurance companies follow lockstep.

XNN

The bummer is, even with the latest clot busters, the odds are against you. They only work some of the time. You can have your stroke in the hospital, and your chances are almost the same as taking an aspirin at home.

[XNavyNuke]

The bummer is, even with the latest clot busters, the odds are against you. They only work some of the time. You can have your stroke in the hospital, and your chances are almost the same as taking an aspirin at home.

The thrombolytic proteins that can break up the clot face the same limitations as the neuro protective molecules. It's the real estate problem - location, location, location. If the clot is too far away from a vessel branch with flowing blood, it's takes too long for the therapy to reach the surface of the thrombus and start working. This is the reason for a shift to the drip-and-ship model. Get the clot buster in at the local hospital and transport to a primary stroke center where an INR doc can put a clot retriever in and remove the thrombus. If the drug works during transport that's great. If it doesn't then you have an opportunity to restore flow and save some brain capacity.

This approach is still suboptimal. Good outcomes in ischemic stroke requires opening the clots in minutes, not hours. I live in a rural community. It's fifteen minutes from the ambulance base to my doorstep, another twenty minutes to the nearest community hospital, and an hour of transport time from there to a primary stroke center. As you can tell, I've given this some thought!

XNN

[navy-vet]

And "wet strokes", a disruption in the flow of oxygen enriched blood to an area of the brain due to a break in a blood vessel is a whole different matter.