Chemists have discovered for the first time a unique way to control and modify a type of compound widely used in medicines, including a drug used to treat breast cancer.

By creating artificial ageing in mice, researchers at Lund University in Sweden have been able to track the formation of aneurysms in the walls of blood vessels. One finding of the study, now published in the Journal of Biological Chemistry, surprised the researchers: the mice were simultaneously protected against hypertension by activating a different signalling pathway in the cells of the vessel wall – compensating for the strain exerted on the ageing vessels. The findings create potential for future complementary blood pressure medicines.