New drug found to treat sepsis in mice

LA JOLLA, Calif., March 13 (UPI) -- U.S. medical scientists studying sepsis in mice have made a discovery that might lead to new drug targets for the deadly disease

"We have identified a key connection of signaling pathways in the cascade of events leading to sepsis," said Scripps Research Institute Professor Wolfram Ruf, who led the study. "This defines a crucial point where the immune system spirals out of control to cause severe sepsis (an overwhelming bacterial infection of the bloodstream) and where there is an opportunity for therapeutic intervention."

Ruf, postdoctoral fellow Frank Niessen and colleagues identified a new "cross talk" involving the vascular coagulation system and certain cells in the immune system. By disrupting that cross talk, they were able to rescue mice from death due to sepsis.

The scientists said although there's no guarantee their preclinical success will translate into human therapies, the proof-of-principle experiments might improve the diagnosis of heterogeneous sepsis syndromes and yield potent drugs for treating people who suffer from sepsis.

The research appears in the journal Nature.