Researchers from Germans Trias i Pujol Research Institute (IGTP; Badalona, Spain) have discovered that administering human apotransferrin to mice affected by intracranial haemorrhage (ICH) can mitigate the damaging effects of this severe type of stroke. Findings from an experimental study—now published in the journal Antioxidants—highlight the “promising role” of apotransferrin as a prehospital and pre-triage frontline treatment for all stroke patients, researchers believe.
“The study paves the way for further research to determine the therapeutic potential and safety profile of apotransferrin in clinical studies in stroke patients”, said Alexia García-Serran (IGTP, Badalona, Spain), first author of the study.
Historically, the detrimental effects of excess iron in the brain following a stroke have been well-documented. Attempts to counteract this with iron-binding treatments have been made, with deferoxamine and other iron chelators—drugs used to treat iron overload from frequent blood transfusions—being considered for their protective potential in stroke cases.
Building on this concept, previous research conducted by IGTP’s Cellular and Molecular Neurobiology (CMN) group, led by Teresa Gasull and Octavi Martí-Sistac (both IGTP, Badalona, Spain), demonstrated the protective effects of the protein apotransferrin in models of ischaemic stroke.
Researchers claims that, unlike deferoxamine and other drugs with fleeting lifespans in the bloodstream, apotransferrin offers a prolonged protective window due to its extended half-life, marking a “significant stride” compared to transient treatments.
In their latest study in mouse models, the team have used this protein on previously less-studied ICH cases. Their findings reveal the benefits of an apotransferrin-based treatment in mitigating the damaging effects of this cerebral event.
The IGTP researchers found that apotransferrin’s role in guarding against ferroptosis—an iron-dependent cell-death process—could represent a “turning point” in how strokes are treated in the early stages, especially en route to the hospital, and may provide a critical intervention during “the golden hour” immediately after symptom onset.
“In summary, apotransferrin administration is safe and provides sensorimotor improvement to mice exposed to experimental ICH,” the researchers conclude in their Antioxidants paper. “The present results, together with the benefit previously demonstrated for apotransferrin in experimental ischaemic stroke, allow the proposal of apotransferrin as a prehospital frontline treatment that could be administered to patients very early on—even en route to an accurate in-hospital differential diagnostic.”
