The main goal of this study is to develop a noninvasive signature for pulmonary vascular remodeling in Group 3 PH patients, using hyperpolarized 129Xe magnetic resonance imaging (129Xe MRI). Such a signature may identify Group 3 PH responders to PAH-specific therapies. PAH's unique 129Xe MRI signature has been shown in previous studies. Past studies have lacked a pathologic "ground truth" correlate of these signatures, which could be provided by comparing them with the pathology of lung explant tissue from patients who have undergone a lung transplant. This signature could be validated in a cohort of patients with Group 3 PH in future studies.
The objective of this study is to identify a 129Xe MRI signature associated with PAH-like pulmonary vascular remodeling, consisting of plexiform arteriopathy, smooth muscle cell proliferation, and vascular fibrosis, in IPF and COPD that could be used to identify potential responders vs non-responders to PAH-specific therapies. The central hypothesis is that similar mechanisms and pathways underlie pulmonary vascular remodeling in IPF-PH, COPD-PH, and PAH. However, only a subset of Group 3 PH patients display remodeling consistent with PAH, resulting in responder vs. non-responder phenotypes when treated with PAH-specific therapies. In preliminary studies of subjects treated with Tyvaso, The study team has observed distinct 129Xe MRI signatures at baseline and with therapy depending on patients' underlying lung function. Consistent with this, recent studies using single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNAseq) of the pulmonary vasculature in IPF have demonstrated changes consistent with vascular remodeling.
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation
NON_RANDOMIZED
Purpose
DIAGNOSTIC
Masking
NONE
Enrollment
30
Each xenon dose will be limited to a volume less than 25% of subject lung capacity (TLC),
Duke University Medical Center
Durham, North Carolina, United States
RECRUITINGa pathology-based 129Xe MRI noninvasive signature of pulmonary vascular remodeling that could be validated in a larger cohort of Group 3 PH patients
Such a signature could then be tested in clinical trials in Group 3 PH. These studies will have an important positive impact because they lay the foundation for a precision medicine strategy in Group 3 PH through the identification of potential responders and non-responders to PAH-specific therapies
Time frame: Day 1
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