Despite new medication, cystic fibrosis often leads to permanent lung damage. Working with an international team, researchers from the Technical University of Munich (TUM) have discovered that the disease causes changes in the immune system early in life, presumably even in newborns. These changes lead to frequent inflammation and are not affected by drugs targeting the altered mucus production.
Cystic fibrosis is caused by hereditary genetic mutations that impair or halt the production of the CFTR protein. The respiratory tract is most severely affected. There, the mucus becomes so viscous that pathogens like bacteria cannot be removed by coughing. The result is often a deadly cycle of infection and inflammation.
In recent years, doctors have started using so-called CFTR modulator therapies to enhance…