Pancreatic elastase is the digestive enzyme the pancreas produces to help digest food. Doctors can measure elastase levels by testing a stool sample. Low levels could indicate exocrine pancreatic ...

Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide, with dismal ∼15% five-year survival rates despite therapeutic advances over the past few decades 1. A better understanding of tumor ...

Elastase is a powerful enzyme that plays a critical role in various biological processes, both in physiological and pathological contexts. It belongs to the family of serine proteases, which are ...

Two million Americans suffer from pulmonary emphysema, costing $2.5 billion/year and contributing to 100,000 deaths/year. Emphysema is thought to result from an imbalance between elastase and ...

Researchers have discovered that an imbalance between the enzyme neutrophil elastase and its inhibitor, ±1-antitrypsin, causes inflammation, obesity, insulin resistance, and fatty liver disease. Many ...

Lung function may be affected due to cycles of prolonged inflammation as well as chronic infection of the airways that lead to respiratory diseases like chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) ...

Exocrine pancreatic insufficiency (EPI) causes clay-colored, greasy stools that smell foul. A stool test to check for low levels of the elastase enzyme can help diagnose the condition. The pancreas ...