Researchers identified microRNA-224 as a promising, first-in-class treatment target for pulmonary arterial hypertension, a rare disease that damages the blood vessels in the lungs.

Researchers blocked a naturally occurring molecule to reverse pulmonary arterial hypertension in preclinical models, a finding that could point to a new treatment approach for people with a rare and often fatal lung disease.

Pulmonary arterial hypertension, or PAH, damages the blood vessels in the lungs and makes it harder for the heart to pump blood.

It affects the heart’s right ventricle that supplies oxygen rich blood to the lungs and, if left untreated, can lead to heart failure and death within two to three years after diagnosis.

In a study published in Science Translational Medicine and led by Yassine Sassi of the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC, researchers focused on microRNA-224, w…