Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis is a rare, chronic and serious lung disease that causes progressive scarring of lung tissue and loss of respiratory capacity. Life expectancy after diagnosis is only 2 to 5 years, and current therapeutic options are very limited. In the most advanced cases, lung transplantation continues to be, even now, the only alternative with a chance of cure.
Now, research published in the scientific journal Frontiers in Pharmacology opens up a new avenue of hope for patients with this pathology. The study, with the participation of IDIBELL and Bellvitge University Hospital, demonstrates the potential of a new oral drug candidate for the treatment of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. The results point to GTX-11, a compound developed by the biotechnology company GAT Therapeutics, based at the Barcelona Science Park (PCB-UB), as a real therapeutic alternative for patients, capable of improving lung function, reducing inflammation and damage to the lungs, and reducing associated vascular alterations in different experimental models.
The study has been carried out in collaboration with the research group led by Dr. Maria Molina, scientific director and head of the Pulmonology research group at IDIBELL and coordinator of the Interstitial Lung Diseases Unit at Bellvitge Hospital, together with research staff from CIBERES-ISCIII, the Research Foundation of the General University Hospital of Valencia and the University of Valencia.
GTX-11, acting at the root of the problem
The experiments carried out indicate that GTX-11 could act on some of the key mechanisms involved in the development of pulmonary fibrosis. In the models studied, the compound managed to significantly reduce pulmonary fibrosis, inflammation and vascular remodeling, with effects comparable to or even greater than those of some of the antifibrotic treatments currently used in clinical practice, such as nintedanib or pirfenidone.
In addition, the drug showed an improvement in survival in experimental models of pulmonary fibrosis, as well as a decrease in the activation of fibroblasts, the cells responsible for the formation of scar tissue that characterizes this disease.
According to Dr. Maria Molina, “one of the most relevant aspects of the study is to see validation of the compound’s antifibrotic effect on primary fibroblasts derived from patients with interstitial lung disease. In these cells, GTX-11 consistently reduced the probiotic response and the production of inflammatory mediators, which reinforces the clinical and translational relevance of the results.”
This research is also aligned with the objectives of the Bellvitge REMMA programme, promoted by the Bellvitge Health Campus to advance research and precision medicine in rare adult diseases, including several interstitial lung diseases.
The Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute (IDIBELL) is a research center created in 2004 and specialized in cancer, neuroscience, translational medicine and regenerative medicine. It has a team of more than 1,500 professionals who, from 73 research groups, publish more than 1,400 scientific articles per year. IDIBELL is participated by the Bellvitge University Hospital and the Viladecans Hospital of the Catalan Institute of Health, the Catalan Institute of Oncology, the University of Barcelona and the City Council of L Hospitalet de Llobregat.
IDIBELL is a member of the Campus of International Excellence of the University of Barcelona HUBc and is part of the CERCA institution of the Generalitat de Catalunya. In 2009 it became one of the first five Spanish research centres accredited as a health research institute by the Carlos III Health Institute. In addition, it is part of the HR Excellence in Research program of the European Union and is a member of EATRIS and REGIC. Since 2018, IDIBELL is an Accredited Center of the AECC Scientific Foundation (FCAECC).