Why coffee is good for the heart?
Ironically, but coffee is beneficial for a person. It protects against type II diabetes, heart disease and heart attack. But previously it was not clear why this is happening. Now we know what the physiological reason for the beneficial effects of this drink.
A new study shows that caffeine helps the movement of the regulatory protein in mitochondria, enhancing their function and protecting cardiovascular cells from damage. Article about it was published in the journal PLOS Biology, and judging from the above data the concentration of caffeine derived from four cups of coffee, enough to a physiologically relevant effect.
The authors showed that the protein P27, an inhibitor of the cell cycle, protects heart muscle cells from dying and also triggers the transformation of fibroblasts into cells containing contractile fibers are important for the recovery of the heart after myocardial infarction. Then scientists found that caffeine speeds up the movement of P27 to the mitochondria, triggering a chain of reactions, beneficial for the heart, and all this can be achieved by drinking only four cups of coffee. What’s more, it protects the heart in mice with obesity, and in elderly mice.
These results can lead to more thoughtful strategies to protect heart muscle from damage, and also to include coffee in the diet of the elderly.
Moreover, increased mitochondrial P27 can give not only a potential therapeutic effect in cardiovascular diseases, but also increase life expectancy.