Lungs News and Research

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Arthritis medications could reverse COVID lung damage

Arthritis drugs already available for prescription have the potential to halt lingering lung problems that can last months or years after COVID-19 infections, new research from the University of Virginia School of Medicine and Cedars-Sinai suggests.

6 Sep 2024

Gut bacteria may influence immunotherapy success in mesothelioma patients

A cancer study has found that certain gut bacteria may influence whether or not a patient's immune system is successful in fighting mesothelioma, an aggressive form of cancer.

5 Sep 2024

Mucosal COVID-19 boosters outperform mRNA shots in preventing upper airway infections

Aerosolized mucosal vaccines show promise in controlling SARS-CoV-2, offering greater protection and immune response than intramuscular bivalent mRNA boosters.

5 Sep 2024

Selenium and manganese levels significantly impact mortality risk in asthma patients

Study reveals that both low and high levels of selenium and manganese in the blood are associated with increased mortality in adults with asthma, highlighting the importance of maintaining optimal levels of these metals.

5 Sep 2024

Immune cells prevent the lungs' protective barrier from healing after viral infections

Investigators involved in a multicenter study co-led by Cedars-Sinai discovered a pathway by which immune cells prevent the lungs' protective barrier from healing after viral infections like COVID-19.

4 Sep 2024

Penn research uncovers key biomarker for diagnosing sarcoidosis

Sarcoidosis is a rare systemic disease that afflicts an estimated 200,000 people in the US, more often people who are Black and more women than men, particularly when it causes chronic skin disease.

3 Sep 2024

Intranasal vaccine shows broad SARS-CoV-2 variant protection

Study demonstrates that a single-dose intranasal live-attenuated vaccine, CDO-7N-1, provides broad protection against SARS-CoV-2 and its variants by inducing potent immune responses, including neutralizing antibodies and T-cell activity, in animal models.

1 Sep 2024

Rare genetic mutation tied to increased risk of tuberculosis

Tuberculosis is a confounding scourge. It's the leading cause of death from infectious disease in the world, and yet it's estimated that those deaths represent perhaps 5% of infections with Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb).

30 Aug 2024

Fibrin fuels thromboinflammation and brain damage in COVID-19

Researchers reveal fibrin's critical role in COVID-19 by driving thromboinflammation and neuropathology, and highlight a potential antibody therapy to mitigate these effects.

29 Aug 2024

CD4 T cells found to be key players in tuberculosis defense

The body's first line of defense against tuberculosis (TB) involves immune cells that suppress lung inflammation instead of activating it, reported University of Pittsburgh and the Ragon Institute of Mass General, MIT, and Harvard scientists today in Immunity.

29 Aug 2024

Study reveals the role of blood clotting in COVID-19

In a study that reshapes what we know about COVID-19 and its most perplexing symptoms, scientists have discovered that the blood coagulation protein fibrin causes the unusual clotting and inflammation that have become hallmarks of the disease, while also suppressing the body's ability to clear the virus.

29 Aug 2024

Benefits of less intensive stem cell transplants for sickle cell disease

So-called low-intensity blood stem cell transplants, which use milder conditioning agents than standard stem cell transplants, do not appear to damage the lungs and may help improve lung function in some patients with sickle cell disease (SCD), according to a three-year study of adults who underwent the procedure at the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

28 Aug 2024

CNRS scientists uncover activation mechanism of bemnifosbuvir

CNRS Scientists have deciphered the activation pathway of bemnifosbuvir, a drug candidate initially in development to treat hepatitis C virus (HCV). The findings of the research team, led by CNRS scientists, unlock new opportunities to boost the efficacy of this type of drug against other RNA viruses, such as the ones that cause Covid-19 and dengue fever.

28 Aug 2024

SARS-CoV-2 evolves differently in the brain, revealing critical insights into viral tropism

Study investigates the evolution of SARS-CoV-2 within the central nervous system (CNS) compared to the lungs in mice, revealing higher viral divergence in the CNS and highlighting the critical role of the furin cleavage site (FCS) in viral tropism and compartmentalization.

27 Aug 2024

AI enhances understanding of radiation-induced cardiac arrhythmia risk in lung cancer patients

Researchers from Brigham and Women’s Hospital, a founding member of the Mass General Brigham healthcare system, have used artificial intelligence tools to accelerate the understanding of the risk of specific cardiac arrhythmias when various parts of the heart are exposed to different thresholds of radiation as part of a treatment plan for lung cancer.

27 Aug 2024

Children and adolescents experience unique long COVID symptoms

A study characterizes childhood long COVID, revealing distinct symptoms in children and adolescents, highlighting the need for tailored diagnostic approaches.

26 Aug 2024

New $5.8 million grant aims to transform the global landscape of TB research

A $5.8 million grant led by Adrie Steyn, Ph.D., of the University of Alabama at Birmingham and the Africa Health Research Institute, or AHRI, in Durban, South Africa, will provide user-requested infected human lung tissue and analytical services to tuberculosis researchers worldwide.

23 Aug 2024

Mutation in SARS-CoV-2 spike protein enhances brain infection

Scientists have discovered a mutation in SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, that plays a key role in its ability to infect the central nervous system.

23 Aug 2024

Innovative drug reduces inflammation in rats by inhibiting neutrophil activation

A newly developed compound that reduces harmful inflammation in rats caused by overactive neutrophils shows great potential as a safer treatment for various inflammatory diseases in humans.

23 Aug 2024

Disability rights activist pushes government to let him participate in society

Garret Frey refuses to be sidelined. Frey has been paralyzed from the neck down for more than 37 of his 42 years. He has spent decades rejecting the government's excuses when he and others with disabilities are denied the support they need to live in their own homes and to participate in society.

23 Aug 2024