Latest news with #SanfordMarkowitz
Yahoo
29-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Blood-Brain Barrier 'Guardian' Shows Promise Against Alzheimer's
A new drug targeting inflammation in the brain has been shown to bolster the blood-brain barrier in mice, pioneering a potential shift in the fight against neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer's. "Finding [the drug] blocks brain inflammation and protects the blood-brain barrier was an exciting new discovery," says pathologist Sanford Markowitz from Case Western Reserve University (CWRU). What's more, the researchers note that amyloid levels – the abnormally clumping proteins traditionally thought to play a role in the progress of Alzheimer's – remained the same. This suggests the new treatment, focusing on an immune protein called 15-PGDH, targets a completely different physiological pathway than many existing medications. "This is important because the most recently approved Alzheimer's drugs focus only on removing amyloid and, unfortunately, don't work very well and have risky side effects," explains Markowitz. "Inhibiting 15-PGDH thus offers a completely new approach for Alzheimer's disease treatment." The blood-brain barrier is a layer of tissue that any substance entering the brain via the blood must pass through. When intact, the barrier filters out potential dangers such as toxins, bacteria, and viruses. Traumatic brain injury can damage this barrier, increasing risks to brain cells. Such blood-brain barrier deterioration has also been identified as a possible early indicator of dementias like Alzheimer's. By investigating the molecules active within the blood-brain barrier cells, CWRU physiologist Yeojung Koh and colleagues were able to identify that the immune enzyme 15-PGDH was elevated in both mice and humans with neurodegeneration arising from age, injury, or disease. In response, the researchers developed SW033291; a compound that can block the enzyme's activity. The medication was found to successfully protect the blood-brain barrier in mice and prevent cognitive impairment even after traumatic brain injury. "In these mouse models treated with the drug, the blood-brain barrier remained completely undamaged," says neuroscientist Andrew Pieper, also from CWRU. "The brains didn't undergo neurodegeneration and, most importantly, cognition and memory capacity were completely preserved." With almost 10 million new global cases of dementia yearly, an increasing number of people face cognitive decline, either personally or in loved ones. And despite decades of research, treatment outcomes remain unclear. Exploring new tactics like this is essential to improving lives, but there's still a long way to go. "Our findings establish 15-PGDH as a guardian of blood-brain barrier integrity… and a compelling target for protection from neurodegenerative disease," Koh and team write in their paper. This research was published in PNAS. Anti-Aging Cocktail Extends Mouse Lifespan by About 30 Percent Sudden Death Among Professional Bodybuilders Raises Health Concerns Microbe From Man's Wound Able to Feed on Hospital Plastic
Yahoo
27-02-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Renowned Investigators Awarded $8 Million NIH Grant to Study Lucid Diagnostics' EsoGuard® in At-Risk Patients without Symptomatic GERD
Lucid to support study of this expanded indication for esophageal precancer testing in partnership with NIH investigators NEW YORK, Feb. 27, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Lucid Diagnostics Inc. (Nasdaq: LUCD) ("Lucid" or the "Company"), a commercial-stage, cancer prevention medical diagnostics company, and subsidiary of PAVmed Inc. (Nasdaq: PAVM), today announced that a consortium of prestigious academic medical centers, led by principal investigators from Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) and University Hospitals (UH), has been awarded an $8 million National Institutes of Health (NIH) R01 grant to conduct a five-year clinical study designed to evaluate esophageal precancer detection using Lucid's EsoCheck® Esophageal Cell Collection Device and EsoGuard® Esophageal DNA Test among at-risk individuals without symptoms of chronic gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). The study, "A Clinical Trial of Cancer Prevention by Biomarker Based Detections of Barrett's Esophagus and Its Progression," aims to evaluate the effectiveness of EsoCheck and EsoGuard in detecting esophageal precancer (Barrett's Esophagus or BE) to prevent esophageal cancer (EAC) within a non-GERD at-risk population. To accomplish this aim, 800 patients without GERD symptoms who meet the American Gastroenterological Association's (AGA) risk criteria for screening will be recruited across five participating research centers: University Hospitals, University of Colorado, Johns Hopkins University, University of North Carolina, and Cleveland Clinic. "Patients without GERD symptoms account for nearly half of prevalent esophageal cancer cases," said Amitabh Chak, M.D., Professor of Medicine and Oncology at CWRU, gastroenterologist at UH, and the Brenda and Marshall B. Brown Master Clinician in Innovation and Discovery at UH Seidman Cancer Center. "However, these individuals would be excluded from screening based on the American College of Gastroenterology (ACG) guidelines where chronic GERD is a mandatory prerequisite. We aim to utilize EsoCheck and EsoGuard to improve BE detection in this at-risk population that would otherwise go unscreened, and to do so in a manner that does not over-tax limited endoscopy resources. Given the dismal 20% five-year survival associated with esophageal cancer, increased detection and treatment of BE is the best strategy to meaningfully impact esophageal cancer-related mortality." "We are excited to support this landmark study, continuing our longstanding collaboration with Drs. Amitabh Chak, Sanford Markowitz, and Joseph Willis, principal investigators on the NIH grant, and are gratified that the NIH has committed substantial resources focused on our technology," said Lishan Aklog, M.D., Lucid's Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. "This study has the potential to significantly expand the target population for EsoGuard esophageal precancer testing." The technology behind EsoGuard and EsoCheck was developed at CWRU and UH by faculty members Sanford Markowitz, M.D., Ph.D., Amitabh Chak, M.D., Joseph Willis, M.D., and Helen Moinova, Ph.D. They have collaborated closely with the Lucid team since Lucid licensed the technologies on an exclusive basis from CWRU in 2018. About Lucid DiagnosticsLucid Diagnostics Inc. is a commercial-stage, cancer prevention medical diagnostics company and subsidiary of PAVmed Inc. (Nasdaq: PAVM). Lucid is focused on the millions of patients with gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), also known as chronic heartburn, who are at risk of developing esophageal precancer and cancer. Lucid's EsoGuard® Esophageal DNA Test, performed on samples collected in a brief, noninvasive office procedure with its EsoCheck® Esophageal Cell Collection Device, represent the first and only commercially available tools designed with the goal of preventing cancer and cancer deaths through widespread, early detection of esophageal precancer in at-risk patients. For more information about Lucid, please visit and for more information about its parent company PAVmed, please visit View original content to download multimedia: SOURCE Lucid Diagnostics Sign in to access your portfolio
