{"id":112534,"date":"2026-11-05T14:20:24","date_gmt":"2026-11-05T19:20:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/?p=112534"},"modified":"2026-11-05T17:25:28","modified_gmt":"2026-11-05T22:25:28","slug":"canada-research-chair-investigating-how-protein-rust-may-lead-to-heart-disease-and-stroke","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/2026\/11\/canada-research-chair-investigating-how-protein-rust-may-lead-to-heart-disease-and-stroke\/","title":{"rendered":"Canada Research Chair investigating how \u2018protein rust\u2019 may lead to heart disease and stroke"},"content":{"rendered":"

Newman Sze looks at proteins in blood vessels a bit like iron in water pipes.<\/p>\n

\u201cOver time, iron can rust, weakening the pipes and making them leaky or less effective at carrying water,\u201d says the Brock University Professor of Health Sciences and Canada Research Chair in Mechanisms of Health and Disease<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Damaged proteins \u2014 or \u201cprotein rust,\u201d as Sze calls it \u2014 impact blood vessels as they deliver oxygen and nutrients to the heart, brain and other organs.<\/p>\n

And when blood vessels become damaged or blocked, they can cause heart disease and stroke and contribute to dementia.<\/p>\n

Sze is\u00a0investigating the link between damaged proteins and cardiovascular disease with the support of more than $368,000 from the Heart & Stroke Foundation.<\/p>\n

Spontaneous chemical reactions, such as those caused by oxidative stress<\/a>, gradually damage proteins in tissues. These reactions can be activated by inactive lifestyles, unhealthy diets, various stresses and genetic factors, and are the root causes of aging and age-related diseases.<\/p>\n

Similarly, proteins in blood vessels can undergo chemical changes as people age.<\/p>\n

This resulting protein rust can irritate surrounding tissues and cause inflammation, Sze says. Over time, these changes may harm blood vessels and contribute to heart disease and stroke.<\/p>\n

In the brain, protein rust may also weaken the blood-brain barrier, a protective layer of cells lining its blood vessels. This barrier helps keep harmful substances out and supports waste removal.<\/p>\n

Sze says when the blood-brain barrier is damaged, harmful substances may enter more easily and waste products may build up, contributing to brain damage and dementia.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf we can understand why these damaged proteins accumulate and how they contribute to disease, we may be able to develop approaches to guide our immune system to find and remove the damages rather than treating symptoms caused by these damages,\u201d Sze says.<\/p>\n

With the\u00a0Heart & Stroke funding,\u00a0Sze and his team seek to validate their earlier research identifying the precise molecules and chemical reactions leading to protein deterioration.<\/p>\n

Protein damages happen both outside and inside cells, he says. Those appearing in arteries can contribute to vascular inflammation, which can accelerate the blood vessel deterioration and contribute to diseases in older adults.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are systems to repair or remove damaged protein inside cells,\u201d Sze says. \u201cHowever, proteins outside cells have fewer systems to repair or remove them when they become damaged, so this damage can build up as we age and can contribute to tissue degeneration and disease.\u201d<\/p>\n

The team will also test whether an antibody they created<\/a>\u00a0to clear out a type of damaged protein known as isoDGR can be a possible treatment for conditions affecting the heart, brain and blood circulation.<\/p>\n

The antibody \u2014 called isoDGR-mAb \u2014 that Sze and his team manufactured in their lab is designed to boost the immune system\u2019s ability to find and clear abnormal molecules.<\/p>\n

Sze has filed patent protection for his antibody technology and is working with biopharmaceutical researchers to further develop the approach for treating human diseases.<\/p>\n

Early results from animal models showed that the isoDGR-mAb antibody successfully stimulated the immune system to clear out the proteins in tissues that had been damaged by isoDGR.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe will determine whether the antibody preserves artery integrity, reduces plaque inflammation and protects the blood-brain barrier, thereby setting the groundwork for isoDGR-targeted therapy for cardiovascular disease,\u201d Sze says.<\/p>\n

Co-directing Sze\u2019s research team is Brock Professor of Biological Sciences Ping Liang. Other members are Dominique de Kleijn from the University Medical Center Utrecht and the Netherlands Heart Institute, Raj Kalaria from Newcastle University and Christopher Chen from the National University of Singapore.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Newman Sze looks at proteins in blood vessels a bit like iron in water pipes.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":20,"featured_media":112536,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[36,7484,3319,4767,1,5],"tags":[423,8907,1696,7488,348,15317,11082,6292],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/112534"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/20"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=112534"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/112534\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":112537,"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/112534\/revisions\/112537"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/112536"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=112534"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=112534"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=112534"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}