Taking a closer look at a systemic flaw

Your heart is racing, to the point where it is at risk of failing. But, in a countermeasure atypical of the almost always smart-functioning human body, the adrenal gland responds with an excessive output of fight of flight hormones such as epinephrine and norepindephrine. In effect, the body mistakenly responds by making the heart beat even faster -- clearly a problem. Researchers from the Center for Translational Medicine at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia examined this cause and effect relationship.

By blocking an important regulatory enzyme called GRK2, the researchers prevented the hormone production that causes the heart to pump in overdrive, which is what ultimately leads to heart failure. While previous examination of heart failure has targeted the heart alone as the source for failure, this supplementary look into the role of the adrenal gland may lead to new insight.

In the past, doctors have used beta-blockers to block the hormones that force the heart to go berserk and beat like you ate a few handfuls of espresso beans and chased them with a twelve-pack of Red Bull. Researchers involved in this study instead focused on the adrenal gland, and were able to prevent heart failure in laboratory animals.