According to experts at the University of Saskatchewan, a better knowledge of the cellular abnormalities associated with Cystic Fibrosis (CF) could open the path for disease treatment (USask).The study's findings were published in the journal 'Cell Reports.'

A team lead by Drs Juan Ianowski (PhD) and Julian Tam (MD) from the College of Medicine discovered that sodium transport is impaired in CF lungs. The researchers, who were linked with the Respiratory Research Centre, evaluated the CF swine model and used a specialised microelectrode approach that allowed them to conduct studies with extremely high resolution. They revealed that sodium absorption is high in the tiny airways, a hitherto unstudied region in the body.

Julian Tam said, "A precise understanding of the cellular basis of CF lung disease is a prerequisite for the development of treatments such as gene therapy that have the potential to cure CF."  

CF is the most frequent deadly hereditary disease afflicting Canadian children and young adults, according to Cystic Fibrosis Canada. There is currently no cure for the condition, which manifests differently in each patient but mostly affects the lungs and digestive system. CF is caused when a person inherits two copies of a faulty gene, one from each parent and affects about one in every 3,600 children born in Canada.