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A Phase 2a clinical trial testing the oral cannabidiol-derived medication EHP-101 in people with diffuse cutaneous systemic sclerosis can proceed to the higher dose groups, the therapy candidate’s developer Emerald Health Pharmaceuticals (EHP) announced. The study is taking place in the U.S., including Puerto Rico, as well as…

Systemic sclerosis (SSc) patients with interstitial lung disease (ILD) were more likely to have a diffuse cutaneous (dcSSc) disease type and certain cardiovascular complications than patients without ILD, according to a recent study in China. Those with the lung condition were also significantly more likely have elevated levels…

The protein ADAR1 occurs in great amounts in macrophages, a type of immune cell that appears in the early stages of systemic sclerosis (SSc), making the cells more active and stirring up a “turmoil” of inflammation, a mouse study found. Researchers also observed that mice in which the disease…

A 42-year-old man with scleroderma responded well to a second stem cell transplant after experiencing a disease relapse with lung involvement following his initial transplant, according to a recent report. Improvements in skin thickening and lung function were quickly seen, and the patient was still in remission two years…

A new study has found that defects in centromeres — specific regions of chromosomes — are evident in skin cells from people with systemic sclerosis (SSc). People with diffuse cutaneous (dcSSc) and limited cutaneous (lcSSc) forms of the disease showed specific alterations relative to healthy people, but chromosomal…

Various immune-related genes are not equally as active in people with systemic sclerosis (SSc) as they are in healthy individuals, and they may be candidate biomarkers for diagnosis, a study suggests. Researchers also found that two of these genes, called TNFSF13B and TYROBP, may tell how well people with…

Treatment with modified mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) — which can differentiate into a variety of cell types — alleviated the signs of skin scarring, or fibrosis, in a scleroderma mouse model, a study showed. These MSCs, a type of adult stem cell that can modulate immune responses and suppress inflammation,…

The case of a person with scleroderma who successfully received a lung transplant from a donor who had tested positive for COVID-19 may predict positive outcomes for other patients, according to a recent report. “To our knowledge this represents the first successful case of lung transplantation of donor lungs…

Blood levels of the periostin protein were associated with the degree of skin and cardiac involvement, but not lung or blood vessel involvement, in people with systemic sclerosis (SSc), a study found. Levels of the protein also were higher in patients with diffuse forms of SSc, those living with…

People with systemic scleroderma (SSc) who test positive for cyclic citrullinated peptide (CCP) antibodies are more likely than those who test negative to develop interstitial lung disease (ILD) — when the lungs become scarred — and have worse lung function. That’s according to data from a South Korean study…