IDENTIFYING NOVEL BIOMARKERS IN INFLAMATORY AND FIBROTIC LUNG DISEASE

• Research type

  Research Study

• Full title

  Identification of Novel Biomarkers to aid prognostication and define mechanisms of action in Inflammatory and Fibrotic Interstitial Lung disease using peripheral blood

• IRAS ID

  302697

• Contact name

  Paul Minnis

• Contact email

  paul.minnis@northerntrust.hscni.net

• Sponsor organisation

  Northern Health and Social Care Trust

• ISRCTN Number

  ISRCTN00000000

• Clinicaltrials.gov Identifier

  NCT00000000

• Duration of Study in the UK

  2 years, 0 months, 1 days

• Research summary

  Interstitial lung diseases (ILD) encompass a large range of disorders most of which cause progressive scarring of lung tissue. Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis (IPF) and Pulmonary Sarcoidosis make up a large proportion of ILD. IPF is a devastatingly progressive disease, characterized by a prognosis worse than many cancers, with a median survival of 3 years. Recent data suggests that Northern Ireland has one of the highest prevalence of IPF in the UK.
  The Northern Trust services a population of almost 471,000 people across a geographic area of 1,733 square miles making it the largest geographical trust in Northern Ireland. The ILD team has identified > 800 patients attending its clinic. Patient groups include Sarcoidosis (24%), Pulmonary Fibrosis (32%), CTD-ILD (14%), Hypersensitivity Pneumonitis (10%), and exposure (10%).

  The mechanisms driving inflammatory lung disease towards fibrotic transformation in each patient group are incompletely understood and remain undefined. In some fibrotic lung diseases it is postulated that the cumulative action of an accelerated parenchymal senescence determined by either telomere dysfunction or genetic defects, together with the concurrent inflammatory activity leads to exhaustion of regenerative capacity and eventually to severe and irreversible functional impairment in the form of fibrosis.7

  We aim to investigate the role and the relationship between; circulating biomarkers including fibrocytes/fibroblasts, platelets, lymphocyte subsets (including Innate Lymphoid Cell subsets) and cytokines in peripheral blood with disease, burden of disease, activity and prognosis in a range of inflammatory and fibrotic Interstitial Lung diseases.
  

• REC name

  London - Camberwell St Giles Research Ethics Committee

• REC reference

  22/PR/0734

• Date of REC Opinion

  27 Jun 2022

• REC opinion

  Unfavourable Opinion