Lila Levinson,  —

Lila is a Science Writer at BioNews. She completed her PhD in neuroscience at the University of Washington, where she studied how the natural flexibility of the human brain can be used to promote recovery after injury. Previously, she has written about science for The Dallas Morning News and the University of Washington Computational Neuroscience Center. She enjoys exploring the Pacific Northwest and spending time with her cat, Fibonacci.

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Diagnosing children with IgG4-RD requires flexibility, study finds

Diagnosing IgG4-related disease (IgG4-RD) in children may require a flexible framework involving many kinds of tests, as the disease often looks different in children than in adults, according to a review study from researchers in Italy. While IgG4-RD in adults usually affects multiple organs over time, in children it…

Sanofi’s Rilzabrutinib earns orphan drug status in EU for IgG4-RD

The European Medicines Agency has granted orphan drug designation to Sanofi’s rilzabrutinib as a potential treatment for immunoglobulin G4-related disease (IgG4-RD), according to a company press release. Orphan drug status is meant to support the development of potential treatments for life-threatening or chronically debilitating rare diseases for which…

IgG4 levels shape autoimmune pancreatitis, study finds

Type 1 autoimmune pancreatitis (AIP), a type of IgG4-related disease (IgG4-RD) involving the pancreas, can look different depending on the levels of immunoglobulin G4 (IgG4), a study found. People with normal IgG4 levels typically had more limited damage in the pancreas and some issues outside it, the researchers found.

High IgG4 antibody blood levels ID 75% of IgG4-RD cases: Study

High blood levels of IgG4 antibodies may be a sign of many diseases, not solely IgG4-related disease (IgG4-RD), but blood tests for IgG4 can identify most IgG-RD cases and rule it out for most people without the disease, a study in Spain reports. Certain respiratory conditions, autoimmune diseases, and…

Immune cell ratio may predict IgG4-RD relapse risk: Study

A ratio of different types of immune cells called the eosinophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (ELR) may predict risk of relapse in people with immunoglobulin G4-related disease (IgG4-RD), according to a long-term study. People with IgG4-RD had higher ELRs than those with other inflammatory diseases, and a higher ELR was associated with…