
Safety Study of Autologous Stem Cell in Liver Cirrhosis
Liver CirrhosisIt is a fase I/II clinical study to evaluate feasibility, safety and kinetics of cellular therapy with bone marrow-derived mononuclear cells (ABMMC) in patients with liver cirrhosis. All the patients have moderate liver disfunction and a waiting time expectancy of liver transplantation longer than 12 months due their low MELD score. The ABMMC are labeled with 99mTc and infused through the hepatic artery. Scintigraphy is performed 2 and 24 hours after infusion. Patients are submitted to frequent clinical, laboratorial and image evaluation during the follow up period of 12 months.

A Phase I Study of Inhaled Sodium Pyruvate for the Treatment of Cystic Fibrosis.
Cystic FibrosisThe primary objective of this study is to assess the safety of inhaled sodium pyruvate in people with Cystic Fibrosis (CF). Further, to determine whether inhaled sodium pyruvate will improve lung function, as determined by FEV1, or reduce inflammatory markers in induced sputum of people with CF.

Study of Obeticholic Acid (OCA) Evaluating Pharmacokinetics and Safety in Participants With Primary...
Liver CirrhosisBiliaryThis Phase 4, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study will evaluate the pharmacokinetics (PK) and safety of OCA treatment in participants with PBC and moderate to severe hepatic impairment over a 48-week treatment period. Participants who have completed their 48-week double blind treatment period will continue double-blind treatment until all randomized participants have completed their 48-week treatment period and the database for that period is locked. An open-label extension study in which all participants receive OCA will be considered following review of blinded safety and PK data.

Telehealth Intervention in Cirrhotics
CirrhosisLiver1 moreThis study is a randomized controlled trial comparing a simple telehealth intervention implemented after hospital discharge to standard of care, specifically looking at the number of hospital readmissions throughout the course of the study. All cirrhotic patients admitted to the Hepatology service at The Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania will be approached and consenting patients will be randomized to one of the two arms as outlined below. Patients will be followed for 90 days with daily texts and weekly phone calls. The rates of 30 and 90 day readmission as well as the days to readmission will be compared between the two study groups.

Microvesicles and Monocytes to Predict Mortality of Patients With Cirrhosis
CirrhosisChronic liver diseases related to viral hepatitis, metabolic syndrome or excessive alcohol consumption can evolve towards cirrhosis. Cirrhosis is responsible for 170 000 deaths per year in Europe. Initially asymptomatic and called "compensated" it can become "decompensated" with the developement of acute complications such as infections, ascites or variceal bleeding. The transition from compensated to decompensated cirrhosis is associated with a reduction in survival from 95 to 55% at 1 year. The only curative treatment for cirrhosis is liver transplantation (LT). Liver transplants are allocated according to the severity of the patients. Despite a modest prognostic value (area under the ROC curve = 0.7 to predict the risk of death), graft allocation is based on the MELD (Model for End-Stage Liver Disease) score including INR, bilirubin and serum creatinine. In 2014, 11.5% of registered patients died on the liver transplant waiting list, illustrating the need for biomarkers that predict death and improve MELD-based prediction. Microvesicles are membrane vesicles released in extracellular space during cell activation or apoptosis. Our team showed that circulating levels of hepatocyte microvesicles increase with the severity of cirrhosis and predict survival at 6 months independently of MELD score in a cohort of 242 patients with cirrhosis. Type 1 interferons (IFN-1) are mediators of inflammation, which is excessively activated in cirrhosis. Our team has shown that a gene signature (IFN score) measured in the immune cells of 101 patients with cirrhosis is able to predict 6 month-survival independently of the MELD score. Thus, the investigators hypothesize that a composite score combining the level of circulating hepatocyte microvesicles, the IFN score and the MELD score could improve the prediction of survival in patients with severe cirrhosis. The aim of this study is to compare the prognostic performance for the cumulative incidence of death at 6 months of a composite score including MELD, hepatocyte microvesicle level and IFN score with that of the MELD score alone, in patients with Child B or C cirrhosis, considering liver transplantation as a competitive risk. To address this question, peripheral blood from 335 patients with Child B or C cirrhosis will be obtained and hepatocyte microvesicle levels and IFN score will be measured using ELISA/filtration and Real Time-quantitative PCR.

RENOVATE Fibrosis:HFNC Versus NIPPV in Acute Respiratory Failure in Patients With Pulmonary Fibrosis...
Acute Respiratory FailurePulmonary FibrosisA pilot multicentric randomized controlled study investigating the feasibility of recruiting 50 pulmonary fibrosis patients in acute respiratory failure within18 months. Additionally, exploratory efficacy and safety outcomes will be evaluated.

Effect of Probiotics in Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease and Steatohepatitis
Fatty Liver DiseaseFibrosis5 moreThis study will evaluate the effect of probiotics, a beneficial intestinal bacteria supplement, if it will cause improvement of the non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and or non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH- an inflammation with concurrent fatty accumulation of the liver) as measured by transient elastography - an ultrasound of the liver that assess the elastic properties (density) and stiffness of the liver tissue. This study will enroll patients 18 years and older with diagnosis of NAFLD and or NASH.

Using Data-Driven Implementation Strategies to Improve the Quality of Cirrhosis Care
CirrhosisLiverThis Veteran Affairs (VA) Quality Improvement project aims to understand which data-driven implementation strategies promote evidence based practices that improve high-quality care for Veterans with cirrhosis.

23andMe IPF Research Study
Idiopathic Pulmonary FibrosisThe long term goal of this study is to increase genetic understanding of IPF to enable the development of an effective drug for IPF that can improve the lives of those living with the condition.

Changes in iOS in IPF
Idiopathic Pulmonary FibrosisIdiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is a condition where scar tissue (called fibrosis) builds up in the lungs. It usually gets worse over time. Fibrosis causes the lungs to become stiff, and reduces the amount of oxygen that the lungs can take up. People with IPF complain of worsening breathlessness, which limits their day to day activities. Lung function tests are breathing tests that measure how well your lungs are working, and are used by doctors to decide whether to start or stop medicines in people with IPF. However, people with IPF tell us that lung function tests require a lot of effort, can make them cough and feel very short of breath. About 1 in 5 people with IPF are unable to perform lung function results accurately. This might unfairly lead to some people with IPF not receiving the right medications or for their medications to be stopped too soon. Impulse oscillometry (iOS) uses sound waves to measure the stiffness of the lung, and has been used successfully in children who are unable to perform normal lung function tests. The overall aim of the research is to see whether changes in iOS measures can give useful information about the lungs in patients with IPF; for example, by judging the overall impact of the disease on the lungs, or predicting future deterioration. We will look at how iOS changes over time in patients with IPF, and to see whether these measurements can tell us about whether IPF is getting worse or predict important health events, such as hospital admission. We will compare change in iOS with changes in other tests used to monitor IPF and with patient reported ratings of change in their condition. This will help decide the amount of iOS change that is noticed and considered meaningful by people with IPF.