Publications by authors named "Matthew R Hoch"
Background: Cerebral cavernous malformations (CCMs) are vascular neoplasms in the brain that can cause debilitating symptoms. Current treatments pose significant risks to some patients, motivating the development of new nonsurgical options. We recently discovered that focused ultrasound-mediated blood-brain barrier opening (FUS) arrests CCM formation and growth.
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- Cerebral cavernous malformations (CCM) are abnormal blood vessel formations in the brain that can lead to serious neurological issues, with current treatments limited to surgery or radiosurgery.
- Recent studies suggest that focused ultrasound (FUS) combined with microbubbles can temporarily open the blood-brain barrier, which may help in managing CCM progression.
- In experiments on mice, FUS successfully halted the growth of 94% of treated CCMs, promoting a reduction in their volume and preventing further formation, showcasing its potential as a therapeutic option.
The blood brain barrier (BBB) plays a critically important role in the regulation of central nervous system (CNS) homeostasis, but also represents a major limitation to treatments of brain pathologies. In recent years, focused ultrasound (FUS) in conjunction with gas-filled microbubble contrast agents has emerged as a powerful tool for transiently and non-invasively disrupting the BBB in a targeted and image-guided manner, allowing for localized delivery of drugs, genes, or other therapeutic agents. Beyond the delivery of known therapeutics, FUS-mediated BBB opening also demonstrates the potential for use in neuromodulation and the stimulation of a range of cell- and tissue-level physiological responses that may prove beneficial in disease contexts.
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