José Lopes, PhD, managing science editor —

IBIO-CFB03, an investigational fibrotic therapy, was selected as iBio’s lead candidate for further development, the company announced in a press release. The product may be a new treatment option for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) and scleroderma. Fibrosis is characterized by inflammation and buildup of collagen…

Increasing the production of lipids in the lungs may help slow pulmonary fibrosis progression and potentially lead to new treatment options, a study suggests. The study, “Lipid Synthesis is Required to Resolve ER Stress and Limit Fibrotic Responses in the Lung,” was published in the American…

A Phase 3 clinical trial in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) patients will be a top clinical development priority for Prometic Life Sciences in 2018, the company announced. The realignment of the company’s research priorities follows a meeting held with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in January 2018.

An enzyme can start a chain of events that leads to cells involved in tissue scarring reversing their fibrosis-generating activity, British and American researchers have discovered. The study dealt with the enzyme’s effect on myofibroblasts — cells involved in wound healing and inflammatory response. The discovery could lead to new therapies for the lung scarring…

Kadmon’s KD025 slowed the progression of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis and patients’ decline in lung function, a Phase 2 clinical trial shows. The IPF patients in the open-label trial (NCT02688647) had previously been treated with Genentech’s Esbriet (pirfenidone) or Boehringer Ingelheim’s  Ofev (nintedanib) — or had…

Swiss researchers have identified a potential blood biomarker for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis — a precursor to the signaling molecule lysophosphatidic acid. Their study, ”Serum metabolic profiling identified a distinct metabolic signature in patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis – a potential biomarker role for LysoPC,” was published in the journal…

Actelion Pharmaceuticals’ Tracleer (bosentan) increased the overall survival and reduced the hospitalizations of patients with pulmonary hypertension stemming from idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, or IPF-PH, a Japanese clinical trial shows. Researchers published their preliminary findings on the ongoing long-term trial in the journal BMC Pulmonary Medicine. The title of the article…

Treatment with Esbriet (pirfenidone) reduces cough in patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), a new European study finds. The study, “Effect of pirfenidone on cough in patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis,” appeared in the European Respiratory Journal. Its senior author was Dr. Marlies Wijsenbeek of the respiratory…

A gene previously shown to be associated with cancer — called T-cell lymphoma invasion and metastasis 1 (TIAM1) — may be an effective therapeutic target in pulmonary fibrosis (PF), a new study from China suggests. The study reporting the findings, “TIAM1 inhibits lung fibroblast differentiation in pulmonary…

A Phase 2/3 clinical trial of PBI-4050, a potential new therapy for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), according to Prometic Life Sciences. The FDA has granted the drug candidate investigational new drug (IND) status, which facilitates clinical research. The Phase 2/3…