Lungs News and Research

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Penn scientists find cytokine as key to fighting and treating viral infection in the lungs

Viral infections that occur in a patient's lungs are a significant cause of hospitalization and death among children and the elderly.

3 Feb 2017

Parents can take eight steps to boost child's immunity, says family medicine specialist

No magic elixir can prevent children from developing occasional colds and viruses, but takings steps to boost their immune system can minimize their chances of catching every bug that winds its way through the daycare center or school.

3 Feb 2017

Study reveals how white blood cells get pushy to rapidly reach areas of infection

One of the mysteries of the living body is the movement of cells - not just in the blood, but through cellular and other barriers.

31 Jan 2017

First stem cell study could lead to development of therapy to reduce inflammation caused by CF

A 39-year-old man with cystic fibrosis (CF) made history by becoming the first person to receive human adult stem cells in a new research study that researchers hope will someday lead to the development of a therapy to reduce the inflammation and infection caused by CF.

31 Jan 2017

Scientists identify potential therapeutic solutions to combat age-related fibrosis

The wear and tear of life takes a cumulative toll on our bodies. Our organs gradually stiffen through fibrosis, which is a process that deposits tough collagen in our body tissue. Fibrosis happens little by little, each time we experience illness or injury. Eventually, this causes our health to decline.

30 Jan 2017

Greater land runoff could boost bioaccumulation of highly toxic mercy in zooplankton, study shows

A highly toxic form of mercury could jump by 300 to 600 percent in zooplankton -- tiny animals at the base of the marine food chain -- if land runoff increases by 15 to 30 percent, according to a new study.

30 Jan 2017

Johns Hopkins scientists reveal extra centrosomes can promote tumor formation in mice

When a cell is dividing, two identical structures, called centrosomes, move to opposite sides of the cell to help separate its chromosomes into the new cells.

28 Jan 2017

Hypoxia in primary tumors influences dormant DTCs that evade cancer therapy, study shows

In a first of its kind study, Mount Sinai researchers have discovered the conditions by which specific signals in primary tumors of head and neck and breast cancers, pre-program cancer cells to become dormant and evade chemotherapy after spreading.

28 Jan 2017

Pulmospheres could serve as personalized, predictive model for assessing effect of IPF drugs

Pulmospheres, three dimensional multicellular spheroids composed of lung cells from individual patients, were shown to be effective in predicting the efficacy of medications for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, according to findings from University of Alabama at Birmingham scientists presented today in JCI Insight, a journal of the American Society for Clinical Investigation.

27 Jan 2017

New study explores how protein production goes off script when skin cells turn cancerous

Each cell in the body follows a strict protocol for manufacturing the proteins it needs to function.

27 Jan 2017

UCLA-led researchers identify potential TB drug regimen that may cut treatment time up to 75%

Taking a new approach toward tuberculosis therapy, a UCLA-led research team has devised a potential drug regimen that could cut the treatment time by up to 75 percent, while simultaneously reducing the risk that patients could develop drug-resistant TB.

25 Jan 2017

Islets from rat-grown mouse pancreases can help reverse disease in diabetic mice

Mouse pancreases grown in rats generate functional, insulin-producing cells that can reverse diabetes when transplanted into mice with the disease, according to researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine and the Institute of Medical Science at the University of Tokyo.

25 Jan 2017

Increasing idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis research

IPF is an incurable lung condition with the average life expectancy following diagnosis being just three years. It’s one of the many types of interstitial lung disease (ILD). Interstitial means that the disease affects the interstitium, a lace-like network of tissue that supports the air sacs (alveoli) in your lungs.

From Asthma + Lung UK 25 Jan 2017

Natural compound could reduce risk of developing triple-negative breast cancer metastasis

More than 100 women die from breast cancer every day in the United States. Triple-negative breast cancers, which comprise 15 to 20 percent of all breast tumors, are a particularly deadly type of breast disease that often metastasize to distant sites.

24 Jan 2017

STS releases first publicly accessible report of outcomes from lung cancer surgery

The Society of Thoracic Surgeons has released the first publicly accessible national report of outcomes from lobectomy, a lung cancer procedure that removes a portion of the lung.

20 Jan 2017

Chemotherapy prior to surgery could improve prognosis in African-American breast cancer patients

Administering chemotherapy to African-American breast cancer patients prior to surgery could improve their prognosis and survival rates from the disease, according to a new study.

20 Jan 2017

UC biologists use frog models to study how early stressors may play role in onset of adult diseases

UC biologists have turned to amphibian sources -- specifically frogs and tadpoles -- to help shed light on how early stressors in the womb and shortly after birth may play a part in the onset of adult diseases such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease.

19 Jan 2017