Lung Disease News and Research

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Potential new COPD drug

A study led by researchers at Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) has shown that a compound used in some skin creams may halt the progression of emphysema and reverse some of the damage caused by the disease. When the compound Gly-His-Lys (GHK) was applied to lung cells from patients with emphysema, normal gene activity in altered cells was restored and damaged aspects of cellular function were repaired.

1 Sep 2012

Researchers define new treatment for potentially fatal lung disease in patients with CVID

A team of researchers at the Medical College of Wisconsin and Children's Hospital of Wisconsin Research Institute defined a new treatment for a potentially fatal lung disease in patients with a primary immunodeficiency known as common variable immunodeficiency (CVID).

1 Sep 2012

New data from Boehringer Ingelheim and Pfizer's tiotropium clinical studies on asthma, COPD

New data to be presented at the Annual Congress of the European Respiratory Society (ERS 2012), in Vienna, Austria, will shed light on the current and potential future role of tiotropium, the first once-daily long-acting inhaled anticholinergic for patients with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD).

27 Aug 2012

MedQIA develops new software that forms the basis of Imaging Biomarker Information System

MedQIA has developed a software toolkit of image analysis routines that forms the basis of an Imaging Biomarker Information System (IBIS).

27 Aug 2012

Electronic cigarettes far less harmful and may be beneficial to health

Smoking is the most preventable risk factor for cardiac and lung disease and is expected to cause 1 billion deaths during the 21st century. Electronic cigarettes have been marketed in recent years as a safer habit for smokers, with several millions of people already using them worldwide.

26 Aug 2012

Dartmouth’s professor shares news of DAR-901 TB vaccine development

Tuberculosis (TB) is second only to HIV/AIDS as the greatest killer worldwide attributable to a single infectious agent, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). With 8.8 million cases in 2010 and 95 percent of TB deaths occurring in low- and middle-income countries, the disease continues to be a major public health problem in the developing world. In a July address to the International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease, Dartmouth's C. Fordham (Ford) von Reyn shared news of a promising vaccine in the works.

24 Aug 2012

Malignant mesothelioma diagnosis with an E-nose: an interview with Associate Professor Deborah Yates, UNSW

Malignant mesothelioma is a rare tumor of the pleura which is the lining of the inside of the chest wall. It is highly linked with asbestos exposure.

16 Aug 2012

Ingredient for butter flavor in microwave popcorn is a respiratory hazard

The ingredient 2,3-pentanedione (PD), used to impart the flavor and aroma of butter in microwave popcorn, is a respiratory hazard that can also alter gene expression in the brain of rats. Manufacturers started using PD when another butter flavoring, diacetyl, was found to cause bronchiolitis obliterans, a life-threatening and nonreversible lung disease in workers who inhaled the substance.

13 Aug 2012

New life for forgotten technique in detecting resistant tuberculosis

Scientists of the Antwerp Institute of Tropical Medicine have breathed new life into a forgotten technique and so succeeded in detecting resistant tuberculosis in circumstances where so far this was hardly feasible. Tuberculosis bacilli that have become resistant against our major antibiotics are a serious threat to world health.

10 Aug 2012

Study signals biomarker hope for monitoring COPD

The biomarkers desmosines and C-reactive protein could be used to assess disease severity in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, show the results of a Swedish study.

7 Aug 2012

Weill Cornell Medical College receives NCATS grant to fund Clinical and Translational Science Center

Weill Cornell Medical College has received $49.6 million from the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS), of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), to fund its Clinical and Translational Science Center (CTSC).

3 Aug 2012

RBC transfusion use in neonates requires more study

Results from a systematic review indicate that the safety and efficacy of red blood cell transfusions in neonates is currently unclear and requires more precise study.

1 Aug 2012

Only 19% of seniors with lung disease quit smoking within two years

A recent study of adults age 50 to 85 found that only 19 percent of those diagnosed with lung disease quit smoking within two years.

1 Aug 2012

FibroGen receives FDA Orphan Drug Designation for FG-3019 to treat IPF

FibroGen, Inc., today announced that FG-3019, the Company's human monoclonal antibody against connective tissue growth factor (CTGF), has been granted Orphan Drug Designation by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF).

31 Jul 2012

Roundup: Ore. Gov. suggests malpractice reform; Mass. Gov. proposes new scrutiny for health care providers; Texas has offered HPV vaccine since 2007

The state can cut health care costs and reduce the number of medical-related lawsuits by requiring earlier notification of injuries as well as pretrial mediation, according to a recommendation Gov. John Kitzhaber issued Wednesday. The product of closed-door talks between representatives of interest groups including the Oregon Medical Association and the Oregon Trial Lawyers Association, Kitzhaber's recommendation now goes to a work group including lawmakers, a trial lawyer and doctor that begins public meetings next week.

27 Jul 2012

NIH grants aim at creating 3-D tissue chips to help identify drug safety signals

Seventeen National Institutes of Health grants are aimed at creating 3-D chips with living cells and tissues that accurately model the structure and function of human organs such as the lung, liver and heart. Once developed, these tissue chips will be tested with compounds known to be safe or toxic in humans to help identify the most reliable drug safety signals - ultimately advancing research to help predict the safety of potential drugs in a faster, more cost-effective way.

25 Jul 2012

FDA approves Forest Laboratories’ Tudorza Pressair to treat COPD

Forest Laboratories, Inc. and Almirall, S.A. announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Tudorza Pressair (aclidinium bromide inhalation powder) for the long-term maintenance treatment of bronchospasm associated with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), including chronic bronchitis and emphysema.

24 Jul 2012

Forest Pharmaceuticals receives FDA approval for Tudorza Pressair to treat COPD

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved Tudorza Pressair (aclidinium bromide) for the long-term maintenance treatment of bronchospasm (narrowing of the airways in the lung) associated with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), including chronic bronchitis and emphysema.

24 Jul 2012

New research estimates impact of an R rating for movie smoking

New research from Norris Cotton Cancer Center estimates, for the first time, the impact of an R rating for movie smoking.

10 Jul 2012

Lower pH reduces ability of ASL to kill bacteria in CF airways

The human airway is a pretty inhospitable place for microbes. There are numerous immune defense mechanisms poised to kill or remove inhaled bacteria before they can cause problems. But cystic fibrosis (CF) disrupts these defenses, leaving patients particularly susceptible to airway infection, which is the major cause of disease and death in CF.

5 Jul 2012