« Back to Vicor Press Releases
Vicor's Proprietary Fraction (VPF) Extends Successful Results in the Heart
BOCA RATON, FLORIDA — April 8, 2002 — VICOR TECHNOLOGIES, INC. has recently had the success of extending our previous anti-infarction results observed in the brain to include the heart. One of our outsourced laboratories, Calvert Preclinical, Inc., has examined each of our purified molecular fractions in a model of experimental heart attack. One fraction contains the anti-infarction molecule and the other, its "nearest neighbor" control, does not. By comparing the individual molecules in each fraction, we have shown that there are only 9 proteins and 5 peptides in the anti-infarction fraction that are not in the control. We are energetically pursuing the identity of these molecules.
Specifically, what we observed in the animal model of heart attack is essentially what we observed in the mouse model of stroke. Again, a small animal was used to conserve our costly experimental materials. In the anesthetized and ventilated animal the major coronary artery supplying the left ventricle (left anterior descending, LAD) was ligated through a left thoracotomy. After 45 minutes the LAD ligature was released. Immediately after re-flow was established one of our fractions was injected into the circulation. The heart was allowed to recover from the ischemia for 3 hrs.
To visualize the potential infarction zone, the LAD was re-tied and a blue dye was injected to flow only into the normal tissue. The heart was then sliced into 2-mm sections, and incubated in triphenyl tetrazolium chloride (TTC). The TTC is taken up only by normally functioning mitochondria and turns the tissue "hot pink." If the non-blue tissue is hot pink, then it has recovered completely from the experimental heart attack.
Figure 1. Prevention of myocardial infarction following total occlusion of the LAD coronary artery by IV-injection of the D2 molecular fraction, but not by the NE2 nearest-neighbor control-fraction. TTC = tissue stained by triphenyl tetrazolium chloride (1%) indicating recovery of function; INF = infarcted tissue; NZ = normal zone containing blue dye (Unisperse, Ciba, 5%); HL = normal TTC-stained tissue reflecting numerous highlights
As illustrated by Figure 1 (top), our nearest-neighbor control fraction (NE2) resulted in normal amounts of infarcted tissue (INF). Only tissue in the endocardial layer that continued to be oxygenated by left ventricular blood and a small epicardial layer showed any TTC-staining. In contrast, our experimental fraction containing the anti-infarction molecule (D2) resulted in 100% TTC-staining of the previously ischemic tissue (bottom). The latter animal had a higher LAD occlusion that resulted in the whole left ventricle becoming subject to the ischemia, and consequently a smaller normal zone (NZ) is observed.
We conclude that one of the 9 proteins or 5 peptides that are in the D2 fraction is the single molecule that produces this amazing anti-infarction effect.
Certain statements contained herein are "forward-looking" statements within the meaning of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Because such statements include risks and uncertainties, actual results may differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Vicor Technologies, Inc., prepared this Update and is solely responsible for its content.