A new target for drugs could prevent the deaths of thousands of women in the developing world due to heavy blood loss after childbirth.

Postpartum hemorrhage (PPH) occurs when the uterus fails to contract vigorously after childbirth and the mother loses 500mls or more of blood in the 24 hours after delivery. PPH is responsible for maternal death in 1 in 1,000 deliveries in the developing world. According to recent figures, PPH also complicates around 10 percent of all births in England and Wales.

Researchers from the University of Warwick have identified a novel drug target called Kir7.1, which when inhibited induces an acute and sustained uterine contraction that could help treat cases of PPH.

"There are currently no drugs available that are effective at treating PPH," Andrew Blanks, lead author of the study, said in a statement. "Drugs designed to this target have the potential to be used at low doses to encourage normal contractions in a clinical induction, so avoiding a long labor, which results in uterine fatigue. High doses could be used to induce contractions to acute PPH."

PPH is a major global cause of maternal morbidity and mortality, accounting for around 25 percent of deaths in postpartum mothers in developing nations.

The research team, which included colleagues from Washington University, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Newcastle University, and University of Edinburgh, worked with Medical Research Council Technology to develop drugs to the new target.

"Often when a woman has been in labor for a long time, the uterus becomes exhausted and cannot contract as quickly as it should after delivery," Blanks added. "Our treatment works via a separate mechanism of action to the drugs (oxytocics) that are currently used to induce labor. It bypasses the biochemical pathways which become exhausted and desensitized during a prolonged labor, we have demonstrated in principle that it should be more effective."

The findings were recently published in EMBO Molecular Medicine.