Grant: Project Grant

The diseases atherosclerosis, restenosis and bypass graft failure are the leading causes of morbidity and mortality and are responsible for >45,000 deaths in Canada each year. The current standard of treatment for atherosclerosis is to insert a drug eluting stent, to limit narrowing of the arteries that occurs in atherosclerosis and restenosis. However, the drugs currently used kill cells non-selectively, and thus can damage the protective endothelial cell layer that lines the artery. This can result in blood clots forming and occluding the artery, a process called restenosis. Moreover, stenting is not used for all conditions, and is of limited use in occlusive peripheral artery disease, which is common in people with diabetes. We have devised an approach to inhibit the migration of smooth muscle cells which move into the inner layer of the blood vessel after angioplasty or stenting, causing restenosis. We will use nanoparticles coated with a peptide which inhibits the growth of smooth muscle cells, but spares the protective endothelial cell layer. These peptide coated nanoparticles will be administered coated on balloon angioplasty catheters. The peptide and delivery system are novel, and show great promise for use as therapies to treat atherosclerosis and other vascular diseases.