New blood pressure drug derived from sea creature promises to save millions of lives

May 15 2007

Scientists in Britain say they have developed a new vaccine for people suffering from hypertension; they say the vaccine will control blood pressure and has the potential to save millions of lives.

The vaccine is the brainchild of drug company Protherics which is based in Cheshire; it is based on a protein found in the sea creature the limpet.

The new vaccine consists of a course of three injections followed by a booster every six months; the vaccine attacks a hormone called angiotensin which is produced by the liver and is the main culprit in raising blood pressure.

Protherics says the new vaccine has been successfully tested in patients with only a few side effects such as a flu-like illness.

It is expected to hit the market within five years and the manufacturer is now planning trials of an improved version of the vaccine, which is ten times more effective at stimulating the immune system than its original formula.

Hypertension is a silent killer that affects a third of all adults and puts them at double the risk of dying from heart disease or stroke.

An estimated one billion people worldwide currently have high blood pressure, and that figure is expected to reach over half a billion more by 20.