Marta Figueiredo, PhD, science writer —

Children living in the same household with adults who work in mineral dust-releasing jobs may have an increased risk of developing sarcoidosis, according to a small study. The findings suggest that indirect exposure to potentially harmful minerals — and specifically, inhaled mineral particles — through co-habitation with adults working…

The blood levels of natural killer T-cells (NKT), a type of immune cell, are reduced significantly in sarcoidosis patients with subclinical signs of heart involvement relative to those without, a small study shows. Notably, low NKT cell levels were associated significantly with imaging markers of heart inflammation, suggesting that…

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has granted orphan drug designation to aTyr Pharma’s experimental immunomodulatory molecule ATYR1923 for the treatment of sarcoidosis. The therapy is being developed for severe inflammatory diseases affecting the lungs, which in sarcoidosis patients is called pulmonary sarcoidosis. Orphan drug status is given to…

White women with sarcoidosis and multiorgan involvement may be at a higher risk of hypothyroidism, or low thyroid gland activity, than other people with the overactive immune system disorder, according to a study of more than 3,800 patients in the U.S. In fact, hypothyroidism — which is significantly…

aTyr Pharma’s experimental therapy ATYR1923 safely and effectively improves lung function and reduces symptoms in adults with pulmonary sarcoidosis, while lowering the need for oral corticosteroids, top-line data from a Phase 1b/2a clinical trial show. Notably, while all three tested therapy doses were well-tolerated, greater clinically meaningful…

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has granted orphan drug designation to RLF-100 (aviptadil), Relief Therapeutics’ investigational inhaled therapy for sarcoidosis. Such status is given to treatment candidates with the potential to be safe and effective in rare diseases — defined in the U.S. as those affecting fewer…

The use of Acthar Gel (repository corticotropin injection, or RCI) was among medications noted by both European and U.S. panels of experts, identified as a possible treatment of pulmonary sarcoidosis when other therapies fail or are not tolerated. Notably, the therapy is currently approved to treat active sarcoidosis only…

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved beginning clinical trials testing XTMAB-16, Xentria’s investigational TNF-alpha inhibitor for the treatment of sarcoidosis. The first, a Phase 1 trial evaluating the therapy in healthy volunteers, is expected to start in July at the Parexel Baltimore Early Phase…

The Foundation for Sarcoidosis Research (FSR) is holding a two-day virtual patient education summit focused on providing relevant medical content on sarcoidosis, patient and care-partner perspectives, and updates on current and future research in the field. To attend the summit, set for June 12–13, patients and caregivers can…

aTyr Pharma, which is developing a candidate therapy for pulmonary sarcoidosis called ATYR1923, has appointed Andrea Wilson — a sarcoidosis patient and advocate who co-founded the Foundation for Sarcoidosis Research (FSR) — as a patient advisor. “We are pleased during Sarcoidosis Awareness Month to welcome Andrea, a…