Scientists who merged the bloodstreams of young and old mice have identified a growth hormone that may have the potential to reverse age-related heart failure.
And while researchers say that the hormone, GFD011, may have this capability of in mice, it is still unclear the potential it holds for humans.
The most common type of heart failure is attributed to stiffening of the heart's chambers and about 1 percent of people throughout the U.S. experience the cardiovascular condition after they reach 50 years old.
But the new study, led by Francesco Loffredo from the Harvard Stem Cell Institute and published in the journal Cell, explains how mice experience a similar heart-aging process as humans.
"We think this is something that we can really look at very carefully for the form of heart failure that occurs in the elderly," said Richard Lee, the study's lead author from the Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston.
"When we give this factor to old mice and give them this factor so it brings the level back up to those of young mice, then the heart very quickly, in a period of just weeks, goes back to the appearance of the young mouse."
Lee added that the reversal was first seen after researchers combined the bloodstreams of the young and old mice and as a result, detected that age-related thickening of the heart was reversed.
Scientists working on the study determined that it was the blood chemistry component of the growth hormone injections that was responsible for the age-reversal.
Heart failure can only be treated by limited means, so a revelation like this one could mean a huge advancement in cardiovascular treatment options for age-related heart issues.
"We have been working on this concept for several years that there was something in the young blood that could turn the clock back," Lee said.
"We don't know if this works in humans yet, but we're going to work this out as quickly as we can."
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