|
RESEARCHERS ARE EMBARKING ON FIRST-OF-ITS-KIND DRUG STUDY OF A TREATMENT THAT MAY REVERSE DAMAGING EFFECTS OF EMPHYSEMA
21 April 2001 - Boston University
| Boston University School of Medicine researchers are embarking on a first-of-its-kind drug study of a treatment that may reverse the damaging effects of emphysema. The Feasibility of Retinoid Therapy for Emphysema study, is a National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute funded clinical trial that will test retinoic acid, a vitamin A derivative, in treating emphysema. |
Boston University School of Medicine researchers are embarking on a first-of-its-kind drug study of a treatment that may reverse the damaging effects of emphysema. The Feasibility of Retinoid Therapy for Emphysema study, is a National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute funded clinical trial that will test retinoic acid, a vitamin A derivative, in treating emphysema. In 1997, NHLBI-funded scientists reported that retinoic acid had reversed emphysema in the lungs of laboratory rats. A workshop of pulmonary experts organized by the NHLBI shortly thereafter agreed that more information about the biologic effects and safety of retinoic acid in emphysema patients was needed before undertaking large-scale clinical trials. The three-year FORTE Study will investigate the biologic effects and safety profile of retinoic acid treatment in patients with emphysema, providing information that may ultimately be used to design large clinical trials to definitively evaluate the effectiveness of retinoic acid in treating emphysema. "Emphysema is a devastating disease, and treatment options are extremely limited," said George O'Connor, MD, MS, an associate professor of medicine at BUSM and principal investigator of the study. "We hope this study will provide us with a new option that will relieve symptoms and improve quality of life for emphysema patients in our community." Emphysema is a lung disease that affects millions Americans, most of them longtime smokers over the age of 45. Emphysema and other forms of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease are the fourth leading cause of death in the United States each year and account for more than $2.5 billion in annual health care costs. The other centers participating in FORTE include: Columbia University, New York City; University of California, Los Angeles; University of California, San Diego; and University of Pittsburgh.
http://www.bu.edu/
About: Boston University
Boston University has a well-deserved reputation for excellence in research in a wide range of disciplines and a demonstrated commitment to fostering innovative interdisciplinary research. The Office of the Associate Provost for Research and Graduate Education supports the University in facilitating research at the both the student and faculty levels.Our mission is to enhance and encourage research at Boston University and to provide a climate conducive to maintaining the University at the cutting edge of research and scholarly activities. We work with the Boston University community to plan and coordinate interdisciplinary research and represent the University in research matters related to Inter-University consortia. To encourage new, innovative, and cross-disciplinary efforts, this office administers the Special Program for Research Initiation Grants (SPRInG). We showcase graduate research at Science & Technology Day. This annual event features nearly 200 research posters by graduate students from both the Medical and Charles River Campuses working in a wide range of disciplines. Our annual research magazine, Research at Boston University, informs a wide audience about a selection of our significant research findings and ongoing studies at Boston University. We also maintain a strong presence on the web through this site and through the Science Coalition’s website, which brings our research successes to the attention of Congress and other policy makers in the federal government. To assist Boston University researchers, this office oversees the Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program and coordinates with the Office of Sponsored Programs on the Charles River Campus , the research administration on the Medical Campus, the Office of Research Compliance, and the various graduate programs. For the development of commercially viable ideas, we administer the Provost's Innovation Fund and work closely with the Office of Technology Transfer. We also coordinate proposals where there are institutional limits to the number of proposals that may be submitted, cost sharing requirements, significant laboratory renovations, or other special circumstances. This office assists departments and centers to achieve a diverse faculty and graduate student body through our membership and activities with the Northeast Alliance for Graduate Education and the Professoriate and through our affiliation with the Clare Boothe Luce program of the Henry Luce Foundation. |
More News:
• For April 2001
• From Boston University
• For University
|
