Serum mitochondrial DNA predicts the risk of acute exacerbation and progression of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis

Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is a progressive, fatal interstitial lung disease with a median survival of 3–5 years [1]. Its disease course is highly variable, as some patients experience rapid deterioration in lung function while others experience more gradual decline [2]. The development of acute exacerbation of IPF (AE-IPF), a highly lethal complication of unknown aetiology, has been shown to accelerate disease progression [3]. Presently, there are no accepted biomarkers that predict clinical deterioration [4], thus indicating an important, unmet need in the management of this devastating disease.

Source: European Respiratory Journal - January 21, 2021 Category: Respiratory Medicine Authors: Sakamoto, K., Furukawa, T., Yamano, Y., Kataoka, K., Teramachi, R., Walia, A., Suzuki, A., Inoue, M., Nakahara, Y., Ryu, C., Hashimoto, N., Kondoh, Y. Tags: Original Articles: Research letters Source Type: research