Fibrosis News and Research

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Fibrosis is the growth of fibrous tissue.

Study explores link between intraoperative blood loss and pediatric patients' underlying condition

The relative risk of blood loss during corrective spine surgery in children appears linked to the underlying condition causing the spinal deformity, according to a new study from Johns Hopkins Children's Center.

7 Apr 2012

Novel technology to grow new primordial lung progenitors

Researchers at Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) and Boston Medical Center (BMC) have derived a population of pure lung and thyroid progenitor cells in vitro that successfully mimic the developmental milestones of lung and thyroid tissue formation.

6 Apr 2012

Towards a drug to control cystic fibrosis

Harvard stem cell researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) have taken a critical step in making possible the discovery in the relatively near future of a drug to control cystic fibrosis (CF), a fatal lung disease that claims about 500 lives each year, with 1,000 new cases diagnosed annually.

6 Apr 2012

Researchers discover multiple genes associated with meconium ileus

Cystic fibrosis (CF) is a devastating disease caused by mutations in the CFTR gene. In Canada, one in every 3,600 children born has the disease. Researchers have long been puzzled as to how individuals who carry the same CFTR mutations can experience such different courses of disease. Patients with CF are affected in multiple organs such as the lungs, pancreas and liver, to varying degrees.

3 Apr 2012

Phage therapy can combat Pseudomonas infections in CF patients

Scientists in Cork have identified a novel therapy for the bacteria which cause infections in cystic fibrosis patients.

2 Apr 2012

RNA binding motif protein 20 regulates titin splicing

Cardiomyopathy comprises a deterioration of the heart muscle that affects the organ's ability to efficiently pump blood through the body. Previously researchers have tied forms of the disease to the alternative splicing of titin, a giant protein that determines the structure and biomechanical properties of the heart, but the molecular mechanism remained unknown.

2 Apr 2012

Genetic variations could be linked with meconium ileus in CF patients

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill researchers working as part of the International Cystic Fibrosis Consortium have discovered several regions of the genome that may predispose cystic fibrosis (CF) patients to develop an intestinal blockage while still in the uterus.

2 Apr 2012

NACCME acquires US Psychiatric & Mental Health Congress

North American Center for Continuing Medical Education announced today that it has acquired CME LLC, which operates the US Psychiatric & Mental Health Congress.

31 Mar 2012

Galectin Therapeutics fourth quarter net loss increases to $3.7 million

Galectin Therapeutics Inc., the leading developer of therapeutics that target galectin proteins to treat fibrosis and cancer, today reported its financial results for the full year and fourth quarter, ended December 31, 2011.

31 Mar 2012

Biochemists determine atomic structure of new ABC transporter

Proteins belonging to the large and important family of ABC transporters have been associated with metabolic diseases and can cause resistance to antibiotics. Biochemists from the University of Zurich and the NCCR Structural Biology have succeeded in determining the atomic structure of a new ABC transporter. The insights gained could give rise to new therapies to treat multi-resistant bacteria, cystic fibrosis or gout, for instance.

29 Mar 2012

Galectin closes underwritten public offering of 1,333,361 units

Galectin Therapeutics Inc. today announced it has closed its underwritten public offering of 1,333,361 units (including 173,916 units that were offered and sold by Galectin pursuant to the exercise in-full of the underwriter's over-allotment option) at a price to the public of $9.00 per unit, with each unit consisting of two common voting shares, par value $0.001 per share and one warrant to purchase one share of Common Stock.

29 Mar 2012

Study examines link between lab-tested drugs and defective protein that causes CF

Cystic fibrosis is the most common fatal genetic disease affecting Canadian children and young adults, more than two children each and every week are diagnosed with cystic fibrosis (CF). New research at Ryerson University, in partnership with The Hospital for Sick Children, is examining the interaction between lab-tested drugs and the defective protein that causes CF to understand how and why the drugs work and to create stronger, more powerful second generation drugs to treat CF.

28 Mar 2012

First clinical trial to evaluate intravenous antibiotics for CF lung infection

Experts from Bristol and Nottingham are leading a major new national study to investigate whether intravenous antibiotics are effective in killing a common germ that causes dangerous complications in cystic fibrosis (CF) patients.

28 Mar 2012

Hi-tech 3D imaging may improve lives of chronic lung disease patients

Pioneering research in Southampton, using hi-tech 3D imaging, could improve the lives of those suffering from chronic lung disease.

26 Mar 2012

Alcohol linked to 25% increase in liver disease deaths

The first report from the fledgling National End of Life Care Intelligence Network warns that the victims of liver disease are getting younger, with deaths increasing among people in their forties. Deaths rose from 9,231 in 2001 to 11,575 in 2009; some 60% of these were men, and 90% of them were under 70. Deaths are more common in England's northern regions marked by high unemployment and low educational achievement.

25 Mar 2012

New method for in vivo study of unknown selenium metabolism

Spanish and Danish researchers have developed a method for the in vivo study of the unknown metabolism of selenium, an essential element for living beings. The technique can help clarify whether or not it possesses the anti-tumour properties that have been attributed to it and yet have not been verified through clinical trials.

22 Mar 2012

TACT believes that Halo's HT-100 may effectively treat DMD

Halo Therapeutics, LLC, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing novel therapeutics for rare fibrotic diseases, announced today that the TREAT-NMD Advisory Committee on Therapeutics (TACT) has reviewed HT-100, Halo's drug candidate for Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD), and believes the compound has potential based on the proposed mechanism.

21 Mar 2012

Researchers identify Wnt pathway as new target for scleroderma therapy

A genetic pathway previously known for its role in embryonic development and cancer has been identified as a target for systemic sclerosis, or scleroderma, therapy.

20 Mar 2012

Groundbreaking cystic fibrosis clinical trial to proceed after renewed funding

The team of scientists based in Edinburgh, Oxford and London were developing a treatment which involves putting genes into the lungs of patients suffering the fatal, inherited wasting disease, passed early clinical trials in 2010. But the recession badly affected the Cystic Fibrosis Trust, the charity that had funded the programme, and work had to stop last year just as the consortium was closing in on its goal.

19 Mar 2012

Experts highlight latest advances in use of biomarkers in various diseases

Over the last few decades there has been an explosion in the discovery of biomarkers for diagnosis, disease monitoring, and prognostic evaluation. In the April issue of Translational Research, entitled "Biomarkers: New Tools of Modern Medicine," an international group of medical experts explores the promise and challenges of biomarker discovery and highlights the latest advances in the use of biomarkers in various diseases.

16 Mar 2012