Anavex Life Sciences Corp (AVXL)

[blu_1]

Nice article. Sigma 1 agonist drugs such as 273 are most helpful to rescue cells that require A LOT of ATP (energy). Cells of the nervous system and musculature burn the most ATP (energy). The heart is nothing but a muscle after all. If heart tissue/cells aren't getting enough blood supply b/c of blocked coronary arteries, those cells become stressed and cellular 'homeostasis' is lost. Lack of blood to cells = lack of oxygen and glucose = reduced ability of cells to make ATP (energy). 273 can step in and 'goose' a cell to step up ATP production when it is stressed. How? Binds to sigma 1 receptors on the endoplasmic reticulum's (ER) membrane surface. That opens up calcium ion channels on the ER's membrane to release calcium from the ER into the surrounding cytoplasm. Adjacent mitochondria take in all that calcium. That calcium tells the mitochondria to make ATP stat! That increase in ATP can help recouple the ER to the mitochondria and restore homeostasis (and thereby proper functioning of that cell)

Keep in mind, the article states, "The sigma-1 protein is expressed in the left and
right ventricle (of the heart) at even eight- to 10-fold higher levels than in the cerebral cortex, striatum, or hippocampus (of the brain)." So, sigma 1 receptors are extremely plentiful in the heart, which bodes well for 273's potential for treating heart disease.