Pulmonary fibrosis, which affects 5 million people worldwide, is a progressive, fatal lung disease in which people rarely live more than 3-5 years after diagnosis..

The other day, Chicago researchers said they found the key to the treatment of pulmonary fibrosis.

They found that patients with pulmonary fibrosis who have elevated blood levels of the LYCAT protein have a better prognosis..

A team of scientists from the University of Illinois College of Medicine at Chicago (UIC) announced their discovery in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine..

Pulmonary fibrosis is accompanied by the formation of scar tissue, which gradually replaces healthy lung tissue.. As the disease progresses, the person develops shortness of breath and the lungs stop working..

This disease can develop after prolonged exposure to asbestos and toxic gases, as well as after radiation therapy for lung cancer.. Chronic inflammatory and autoimmune processes can also lead to pulmonary fibrosis..

Unfortunately, very often the disease is not diagnosed until its symptoms lead to hospitalization.. But at this point in the lungs, as a rule, there are already extensive irreversible changes..

The new drug will be a breakthrough.

Study lead author Dr Long Shuang Huang, a pharmacologist at UIC, says the study has opened up a new potential target for pharmacological intervention.. Current methods of treating pulmonary fibrosis are ineffective and do not work in all patients..

Previous studies have shown that several genes may be involved in the development of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), a form of the disease whose causes are still not understood..

Dr. Huang and his colleagues decided to study the role of these genes, which code for a protein called lysocardiolipinacyltransferase (LYCAT).

LYCAT protein may slow the progression of pulmonary fibrosis. Scientists measured the blood levels of LYCAT in patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, and found that with higher protein levels, lung function in patients is better, and the chances of surviving the 3-year milestone are higher..

Dr. Huang is confident that " Now the researchers are going to understand which molecules are responsible for the production of LYCAT, and how this process can be influenced..

medbe. en.