Overview

• A novel injectable therapy using a synthetic protein-like polymer (PLP) has been developed to aid heart tissue repair after a myocardial infarction.
• The PLP mimics the protein Nrf2, binding to KEAP1 to prevent Nrf2 degradation, sustaining protective cellular responses and reducing inflammation.
• Preclinical studies in rats showed significant improvements in cardiac function, including better ejection fraction and reduced myocardial damage over five weeks.
• The research, published in *Advanced Materials*, is a proof of concept, with plans to optimize the polymer and test it in larger mammalian models before clinical trials.
• The platform also holds potential for treating other diseases driven by dysfunctional protein interactions, such as multiple sclerosis and kidney disease.