UC Davis research shows that compounds known to play an important role in how insects develop from larvae to adults have been shown in a mouse model for congestive heart failure to be effective in preventing and reducing cardiac cell overgrowth and irregular heart rhythms. Findings were published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

The research, led by cardiologist and cell biologist Nipavan Chiamvimonvat and entomology professor Bruce Hammock, identifies epoxide hydrolase inhibitors as novel and powerful chemical compounds that block an immune system protein (NF-B) known to play a role in cardiac cell overgrowth and arrhythmias. The work identifies a new biochemical target for the development of drugs to treat enlargement of the heart and arrhythmias — conditions that have few treatment options and ultimately progress to heart failure and sudden cardiac death.