With New Discovery by Weill Cornell Medical College Researchers

STUDY’S AUTHORS SHOW BLOOD VESSELS SUPPORT LUNG REGENERATION AND THEIR FINDINGS COULD POTENTIALLY OPEN THE DOOR TO THERAPY FOR LUNG DISORDERS

NEW YORK (Oct. 28, 2011) — Researchers at Weill Cornell Medical College say they have taken an important step forward in their quest to “turn on” lung regeneration — an advance that could effectively treat millions of people suffering from respiratory disorders.

In the Oct. 28 issue of the journal Cell, the research team reports that they have uncovered the biochemical signals in mice that trigger generation of new lung alveoli, the numerous, tiny, grape-like sacs within the lung where oxygen exchange takes place. Specifically, the regenerative signals originate from the specialized endothelial cells that line the interior of blood vessels in the lung.

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