{"id":46946,"date":"1998-12-01T00:00:00","date_gmt":"1998-12-01T06:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/1998\/12\/01\/unmc-researchers-identify-enzyme-found-in-aortic-aneurysmsdiscovery-may-lead-to-future-early-treatment-options\/"},"modified":"2022-08-29T10:59:34","modified_gmt":"2022-08-29T15:59:34","slug":"unmc-researchers-identify-enzyme-found-in-aortic-aneurysmsdiscovery-may-lead-to-future-early-treatment-options","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/1998\/12\/01\/unmc-researchers-identify-enzyme-found-in-aortic-aneurysmsdiscovery-may-lead-to-future-early-treatment-options\/","title":{"rendered":"UNMC Researchers Identify Enzyme Found in Aortic Aneurysms;\n\nDiscovery May Lead to Future Early Treatment Options"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/FONT><\/B><\/p>\n

A team of researchers at the University of Nebraska Medical Center has<\/p>\n

identified an enzyme potentially involved in the growth of aortic aneurysms<\/p>\n

a silent condition that, when ruptured, claims the lives of 15,000 Americans<\/p>\n

each year.<\/p>\n

The discovery, reported in the October issue of Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis<\/p>\n

and Vascular Biology the Journal of the American Heart Association, could<\/p>\n

lead to future lifesaving treatment options that dont require surgery.<\/p>\n

About 2 percent of the population is affected by aortic aneurysms,<\/p>\n

said Timothy Baxter, M.D., associate professor of surgery at UNMC and the<\/p>\n

studys principal investigator. In Nebraska, thats about 25,000 people<\/p>\n

many of whom dont know they have the condition.<\/p>\n

The aorta is the main trunk of the bodys arterial system. It carries<\/p>\n

blood from the heart to each of the branch arteries for distribution throughout<\/p>\n

the body. When an aortic aneurysm occurs, the aorta starts to expand in<\/p>\n

a localized area. If it expands too much, the aorta eventually can rupture,<\/p>\n

resulting in death in many instances.<\/p>\n

About 95 percent of aneurysms occur in the abdomen where the aorta branches<\/p>\n

off to supply blood to each leg. There usually are no warning signs of<\/p>\n

an aortic aneurysm, Dr. Baxter said. It usually is detected by an abdominal<\/p>\n

X-ray or when a physician feels the aneurysm in a persons abdomen.<\/p>\n

Dr. Baxter and his research team identified the enzyme, known as matrix<\/p>\n

metalloproteinase-2, by studying tissue from abdominal aortic aneurysms<\/p>\n

(AAA) and comparing it with tissue from other known vascular disease conditions.<\/p>\n

High amounts of the enzyme were found in the AAA tissue, but not in the<\/p>\n

comparison tissue samples.<\/p>\n

Now that the enzyme has been identified, the research team will seek<\/p>\n

ways to block its growth through drug intervention. We are able to block<\/p>\n

this enzyme in cells grown in culture, but there are many examples of drugs<\/p>\n

effective in the laboratory which have not worked in clinical trials,<\/p>\n

Dr. Baxter said. This will have to be studied very carefully as we move<\/p>\n

to patient trials.<\/p>\n

A series of clinical trials will begin next month on campus to test<\/p>\n

the effectiveness of a tetracycline derivative in blocking the enzyme and<\/p>\n

stopping the growth of the aneurysm. Dr. Baxter said he hopes to enroll<\/p>\n

30 patients in the pilot study.<\/p>\n

Currently, surgery is the only proven treatment option available for<\/p>\n

patients with aortic aneurysms. If detected early enough, repair of the<\/p>\n

aortic aneurysm can eliminate this silent danger. In 1996, Dr. Baxter and<\/p>\n

a team of surgeons from UNMC performed the first ever laparoscopic surgical<\/p>\n

repair of an aortic aneurysm.<\/p>\n

Surgery, however, is only an option for aortic aneurysms that have grown<\/p>\n

to a certain size, Dr. Baxter said. Small aneurysms if detected are<\/p>\n

not treated, but are monitored over time for growth.<\/p>\n

Ultrasound is an effective way to detect aortic aneurysms. It isnt<\/p>\n

cost-effective today, though, because we dont treat aneurysms when they<\/p>\n

are small, Dr. Baxter said. If we could identify a drug that could halt<\/p>\n

the growth of aortic aneurysms, we could effectively treat the condition<\/p>\n

when the aneurysm is small long before it has a chance to rupture.<\/p>\n

If early drug intervention becomes standard therapy, he noted, screening<\/p>\n

for aortic aneurysms could become as commonplace as screenings for breast,<\/p>\n

prostate and colon cancer.<\/p>\n

Although the exact cause of aortic aneurysms is not known, factors that<\/p>\n

contribute to the weakening of the artery wall are:<\/p>\n


–High blood pressure.<\/p>\n


–Smoking.<\/p>\n


–Male gender.<\/p>\n


–Age (55 and older).<\/p>\n


–A family history of aortic aneurysms.<\/p>\n

Men are nearly four times as likely as women to have an aneurysm, Dr.<\/p>\n

Baxter said, but noted that aneurysms are increasing in women. The average<\/p>\n

age of patients who have aneurysms is 70. Many of these patients are smokers<\/p>\n

or ex-smokers, he noted.<\/p>\n


For more information about the study or the coming clinical trials<\/p>\n

at UNMC, contact Dr. Baxter at (402) 559-4395.<\/p>\n

UNMC is the only public academic health science center in the state.<\/p>\n

Through its commitment to research, education and patient care, UNMC has<\/p>\n

established itself as one of the countrys leading centers for cancer research<\/p>\n

and treatment and solid organ transplantation. More than $34 million in<\/p>\n

research grants and contracts are awarded to UNMC scientists annually.<\/p>\n

In addition, UNMCs educational programs are responsible for training more<\/p>\n

health professionals practicing in Nebraska than any other institution.<\/p>\n


 <\/p>\n


 <\/p>\n


 <\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A team of researchers at the University of Nebraska Medical Center has identified an enzyme potentially involved in the growth of aortic aneurysms a silent condition that, when ruptured, claims the lives of 15,000 Americans each year. The discovery, reported in the October issue of Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis and Vascular Biology the Journal of the American […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":79,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_relevanssi_hide_post":"","_relevanssi_hide_content":"","_relevanssi_pin_for_all":"","_relevanssi_pin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_unpin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_include_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_exclude_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_no_append":"","_relevanssi_related_not_related":"","_relevanssi_related_posts":"","_relevanssi_noindex_reason":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-46946","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","department-press-release"],"yoast_head":"\nUNMC Researchers Identify Enzyme Found in Aortic Aneurysms; Discovery May Lead to Future Early Treatment Options<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"A team of researchers at the University of Nebraska Medical Center has identified an enzyme potentially involved in the growth of aortic aneurysms a\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/1998\/12\/01\/unmc-researchers-identify-enzyme-found-in-aortic-aneurysmsdiscovery-may-lead-to-future-early-treatment-options\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"UNMC Researchers Identify Enzyme Found in Aortic Aneurysms; 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