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Pause for Breath
12 October 2016

Pause for Breath

When treating diseases with irreversible symptoms, early diagnosis is crucial, so that progress can be slowed before too much damage is done. One such condition is idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), in which hard connective tissue accumulates in the lungs, progressively degrading their function and making breathing increasingly difficult. A team of researchers has identified a particular type of cells, known as myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs), shown here in orange in lung tissue, which could act as indicators of this disease, facilitating diagnosis. IPF patients were found to possess more MDSCs in their lungs than healthy individuals, and those with more advanced symptoms had even greater numbers of these cells than other patients. What’s more, MDSCs are already linked to reduced immune defences in cancerous tissues and are suggested to play a similar role in IPF, so studying them could lead to better treatments as well as earlier diagnosis.

Written by Emmanuelle Briolat

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BPoD stands for Biomedical Picture of the Day. Managed by the MRC Laboratory of Medical Sciences until Jul 2023, it is now run independently by a dedicated team of scientists and writers. The website aims to engage everyone, young and old, in the wonders of biology, and its influence on medicine. The ever-growing archive of more than 4000 research images documents over a decade of progress. Explore the collection and see what you discover. Images are kindly provided for inclusion on this website through the generosity of scientists across the globe.

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