Fish Found in Ganga River Could Cure Heart Diseases

Zebrafish that lives in the Ganga River, the holy river in Hinduism, could trigger a revolution in the treatment of heart disease – which could lead to the end of heart-transplant surgery. Medical researchers working with the British Heart Foundation are claiming to have discovered a small protein molecule in zebrafish that appears to play a critical role in orchestrating the repair of damaged cardiac muscle.

Zebrafish is a tiny tropical fish found in the Ganga River. It is also today widely found in aquariums.

Mother Nature Network reports

Zebrafish can regenerate damaged cardiac tissue at an incredible rate. In just a week's time, a zebrafish can repair as much as 20 percent of its heart muscle. Now medical researchers working with the British Heart Foundation hope that insight into the fish's amazing ability could lead to the development of new treatments that will one day allow the human heart to heal itself too.

"Scientifically, mending human hearts is an achievable goal and we really could make recovering from a heart attack as simple as getting over a broken leg," said Professor Peter Weissberg, medical director of the British Heart Foundation.

You can read more about this at Mother Nature Network and also at The Independent.