Magnetic Nanoparticle Drug Can Dissolve Blood Clots

Researchers from ITMO University and Mariinsky Hospital in Saint Petersburg, Russia said they have developed and tested a new type of drug that uses magnetic nanoparticles to deliver clot-dissolving enzymes in a specific way that can offer an effective solution.

Blood clots, which can lead to heart attacks and stroke, are known as a leading cause of death worldwide. Emergency medicines are given mainly to dissolve these clots and restore the normal blood flow in the affected blood vessels as quickly and as safely as possible.

According to the Medical News Today, researchers observed that the magnetically controlled, enzyme-based drug is safe for intravenous injection and dissolves clot up to 4,000 times more effectively than present drugs. It also only administered in low dose and is believed to carry fewer side effects.

The researchers observed that in developed countries, clot-dissolving treatment is carried out in 15 percent of the total cases. However, in Russia, the figure is much lower, at almost 2 percent. People who are not fortunate enough to receive the treatment will likely become disabled or die.

Experts said the current clot-dissolving drugs available contain enzymes that attack the clot, once they are injected into the body, but since the immune system begins to attack it as it enters the circulation, the effectivity is quickly reduced. To overcome this, the drugs are given in low doses, in the hope that some at least will reach the clot area before they lose their effect.

It is like "using a sledge-hammer to crack a nut," says co-author Ivan Dudanov, who heads Mariinsky hospital's regional cardiovascular center. Dudanov said that the drug used to dissolve a clot blocking a 1-2 millimeters wide vessel would affect the whole blood vessel.

"In order to change the situation, we decided to develop a method of targeted drug delivery that would allow us to considerably reduce the dosage and ensure that the whole therapeutic effect is focused on the clot," he added.

Digital Journal reported that the new drug is a compound material (a sol-gel magnetite matrix) that can carry thrombolytic enzymes known as urokinase more effectively and directly to the blood clot. The compound material, a sol-gel magnetite matrix, is nano-sized and it is controlled via magnetic field.

The researchers also noticed that they are not the first to propose using a complex material to transport clot-dissolving enzymes. But, other solutions are mostly based on slow-release, which eventually loses its potency.