Work

New Applications of Old Drugs as Novel Therapies in Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis: Metformin, Hydroxychloroquine, and Thyroid Hormone

Year: 2019

Type: article

Abstract: The current paradigm of the pathogenesis of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) indicates that persistent injury to alveolar epithelial cells (AECs) results in the activation of aSMA (a-smooth muscle actin)-expressing myofibroblasts (1).Although no single mouse model fully recapitulates the human IPF disease state, the bleomycin-induced lung injury model remains the most widely accepted method of translational research despite its limitations, which include a paucity of histological findings of usual interstitial pneumonia and the lack of collagen cross-linking, resulting in reversible fibrosis (2, 3).Therapies that reverse pulmonary fibrosis remain elusive and represent a significant, unmet clinical need; we present three novel studies that highlight recent developments in IPF translational research that forges a path for an innovative approach in treating IPF through the novel application of three well-known drugs.n

Source: American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine

DOI: 10.1164/rccm.201809-1700rr

Authors: Edward P. Manning, Ashley Losier, Nkiruka Emeagwali, Changwan Ryu, Shyoko Honiden

Institution: Yale University

Language: English

Topic: Interstitial Lung Diseases and Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis

Subfield: Pulmonary and Respiratory Medicine

Field: Medicine

Domain: Health Sciences

SDG: Good health and well-being

Open Access status: green

Funders: Foundation for Sarcoidosis Research, National Institutes of Health, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute