A CiQUS team improves the treatment for ischemic strokes

A team from the University of Santiago’s Centre for Research in Biological Chemistry and Molecular Materials (CiQUS), a member of the CIGUS Network, an initiative launched by the regional government (Xunta de Galicia) that groups together centres of accredited scientific excellence, has recently published a study proposing a series of improvements in the treatment of ischemic strokes.

The study, entitled ‘Thrombolytic therapy based on lyophilized platelet-derived nanocarriers for ischemic stroke’, was recently published in the Journal of Nanobiotechnology and addresses the use of these biomimetic vehicles to improve the treatment of ischaemic strokes.

The research was coordinated by investigators from the Santiago de Compostela Health Research Institute (IDIS) Francisco Campos and Clara Correa, as well as Pablo del Pino, Beatriz Pelaz and Ester Polo from the University of Santiago’s Centre for Research in Biological Chemistry and Molecular Materials (CiQUS). The work was also part of the doctoral thesis of CiQUS researcher Martina Migliavacca, one of the principal authors.

In this project, nanomedicine was used to prevent the side effects of rtPA, since nanoparticles can protect the drug from degradation and direct treatment to the thrombus, where it should take effect. To do this, biomimetic nanoparticles were used, made up entirely of platelet membranes. The particles encapsulate rtPA and camouflage it in the blood, preventing it from degrading and enabling it to reach the thrombus more efficiently.