Acute pancreatitis is a severe inflammatory disorder of the pancreas, spanning the spectrum of mild discomfort to life-threatening illness. Researchers from Yale have written a comprehensive review of novel therapies for acute pancreatitis, their role based on the cause of the disease, and their risk/benefit profile.

Studies have shown that a common mechanism of injury involves the pancreatic acinar cell, including changes in calcium signaling, dysfunction mitochondria and lysosomes, and changes in the levels of inflammatory mediators. High levels of fats in the blood or released from damaged fat cells can be broken down into toxic fatty acids and also cause acute pancreatitis.

With the spectrum of converging mechanisms impacting disease progression, therapies ranging from peptides, small molecules, and monoclonal antibodies are currently being evaluated in multiple randomized controlled trials to assess the impact of targeting this range of causes shown to impact disease progression.

To learn more, read the review: “Acute pancreatitis: pathogenesis and emerging therapies.”

Zaman, S., & Gorelick, F. (2024). Acute Pancreatitis: Pathogenesis and Emerging Therapies. Journal of Pancreatology, 7(1). https://doi.org/10.1097/jp9.0000000000000168