What do strokes and bioterrorism have in common?
Plenty, according to pioneering research being conducted by MSM Anatomy and Neurobiology Associate Professor Byron D. Ford, Ph.D. He talks with us about how two studies are related and what his findings mean in our modern world.

In the United States, 750,000 people die, and worldwide 15 million people die, annually from strokes.
When I talk to my friends and people who are not scientists, most don't realize that a stroke is something that happens in the brain. Many people think it happens in the arm or heart. We are really far behind on things that can treat and protect brain cells. People take heart attacks seriously; they don't take strokes seriously.

And the age of victims is dropping from 60 or so to those in their 30s. Tell us about your stroke study.
In 1995, four labs, including the one I was doing my post-doctoral work in at Harvard University, discovered a protein that could prove useful as a treatment for stroke. Since 2001, here at Morehouse School of Medicine, my laboratory has been researching that compound, neuregulin.

What is promising about neuregulin?
Two things. First, it directly protects the brain's neurons from dying during the stroke itself, and second, it prevents the inflammation that occurs in the brain hours after the stroke that also kills neurons. Many brain cells die hours and hours after the stroke itself. Administering neuregulin up to 14 hours or perhaps even longer after a stroke occurs can help 90 percent of cells survive. It's extremely potent and it has a long therapeutic window of delivery.

By saving brain cells what kind of injury can be prevented?
We have been able to show in animal models we can prevent paralysis and loss of neuronal function.

What animals are you using for the research? And will these results translate to humans?
That's a very good question. We are using rats and mice in our studies and unfortunately those results don't always translate well in human clinical trails. That's not necessarily the model or type of compound we will administer in future human trials. But one of the encouraging things we have learned is that we can protect victims late in the death phase.

You mean when the brain cells are dying due to inadequate blood flow? Right.

If someone suffers a stroke, how are they treated now?
There is only one drug, TPA, approved by the FDA to dissolve blood clots that cause strokes. But it is very dangerous and only 3 percent of patients qualify to use it. If neuregulin works in humans, like we expect it will, somewhere between 50 to 80 percent of patients will benefit from it.

What are next steps?
Three major things are happening right now. I traveled to China in April 2007 to train on how to conduct studies in monkeys, which are much more similar to humans than rats and mice. We expect to be conducting studies in monkeys by this summer in collaboration with the University of Puerto Rico. We also have filed a patent for neuregulin and are seeking FDA approval. Once we have that approval, we will work to set up a protocol for human patients in clinical trials as quickly as possible-probably within a year.

This sounds like the kind of dream breakthrough a researcher hopes for. It definitely is for me. It will have a huge impact and will be first drug to be useful for protecting neurons against neurological disease.

What message does this send about MSM's research efforts?
We are getting notice in the scientific community, in Atlanta and beyond. We were featured on the National Institutes of Health (NIH) home page in March 2006. We are on the cusp of developing a treatment for stroke and other neurological disorders. I think this has the possibility of being fast-tracked.

In addition to stroke research, what else is on the horizon?
We are just getting our Phase Two funding for SPIRP, the Stroke Prevention and Interventional Research Program. There are three components to the program: a basic science component, an outreach program to hospitals and an education element for middle-school students.

Why are you targeting kids with your message?
Because they might recognize symptoms in their familiy members and the adults around them. And, longitudinally, one of these days, far, far down the road, it may save their lives.

What do you mean?
The American Stroke Association (www.strokeassociation.org) is trying to convince people to use the term "brain attack" instead of stroke. It is the heart's equivalent. If you are having a stroke, call 911 and get to the hospital. Don't wait. You can only take TPA within three hours of a stroke. Many, many people suffer effects hours and hours after a stroke. That's why neuregulin will help.

The promising stroke work led directly to the $3.2 million NIH Countermeasures Against Chemical Threats (CounterACT) Research Network, right?
Yes. It's based on the idea that when people are exposed to nerve agents such as those used in bioterrorist attacks or through pesticide exposure, the brain behaves similarly as it does in the later phases of a stroke. We believe that if we give neuregulin along with common antidotes for chemical neurotoxins, we can prevent a second wave of injury.

Do you mean like Agent Orange?
Similar. We're also talking about chemicals like Sarin, which was used in the New York and Japan subway attacks, and Soman. People who work on farms are also exposed to high levels of chemicals that are similar in structure.

This grant represents a huge vote of confidence in your work and reflects a current political agenda.
It's the reality of the world in which we live. The funding was increased following 9/11 and the war in Iraq. We applied for the maximum award and got it.

What's underway right now?
We are collaborating with Dr. Pamela Lein at Oregon Health and Sciences University, who has expertise in using these types of compounds in the field. We are characterizing the model and seeing if neuregulin might protect from further injury. We expect to have initial data sometime this year.

This has the potential for massive global impact.
We are just beginning, but we expect to get a lot of attention. The number of people that can be protected is huge. We believe the Department of Defense will be very interested in our findings.

These are two very exciting studies.
I would do this work for free if it weren't for the mortgage company!