By a GenomeWeb staff reporter
NEW YORK (GenomeWeb News) Proteome Sciences today said that it will be performing biomarker analysis for a new European research initiative to study hypothermia as a treatment after stroke.
The research project, called EuroHyp-1, is a phase III clinical trial and today its leaders announced an 11 million ($14.6 million) grant from the European Commission under the Seventh Framework Programme to fund research involving 1,500 stroke victims to determine if cooling the brain within six hours of a stroke can effectively treat such patients. In pilot studies, the method has shown to be "remarkably effective," as a treatment, EuroHyp-1 said.
As part of the project, UK-based Proteome Sciences will use its mass spectrometry-based assays to perform biomarker analysis of patient samples in blood, the company said.
The trial funded by today's grant involves 60 universities and hospitals in 25 countries and seeks to recruit patients who have had an acute ischemic stroke. A particular focus will be on those without a "truly effective treatment or who exhibit limited response to the existing standard interventions," EuroHyp-1 said in a statement.
Cooling the brain after cardiac arrest and birth injuries is already used to reduce ischemic brain injury. It acts by inducing a form of hibernation of the brain, "minimizing the need for oxygen and preventing further damage," EuroHype-1 said, and added that the European Space Agency is interested in the method for its potential use in long distance space travel.
According to its website, the EuroHyp-1 consortium consists of 35 European organizations and Australia's National Stroke Research Institute. The phase III clinical trial is led by Universittsklinikum Erlangen and the European Stroke Research Network for Hypothermia.
Original post:
Proteome Sciences Providing Biomarker Analysis for $14.6M Stroke Initiative