EasyMount® Ussing Chambers Enable Breakthrough in Cystic Fibrosis Drug Research
Univ Paris-Est Creteil, INSERM, IMRB, Creteil, France - August 2025 — A groundbreaking new study published in the British Journal of Pharmacology shows that a peptide called CIGB-552 can boost the effect of today’s leading CFTR modulator triple therapy (elexacaftor/tezacaftor/ivacaftor) for patients with the most common cystic fibrosis mutation, F508del-CFTR.
Behind this discovery is the EasyMount® Ussing Chamber System from Physiologic Instruments, which gave researchers the ability to measure whether the therapy actually restored chloride and bicarbonate transport in airway tissue — the defining defect in cystic fibrosis.
Link to Article: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40814116/
Why This Matters
CFTR modulators like Trikafta® (ETI) have already changed the outlook for thousands of patients. But many still don’t achieve full CFTR function, leaving room for lung damage and disease progression. The new study found that when CIGB-552 was combined with ETI, CFTR activity significantly increased beyond ETI alone.
That finding wasn’t based on computer models or indirect biomarkers — it came from direct functional measurement in an EasyMount Ussing Chamber, where epithelial tissues were voltage-clamped and real-time ion transport was recorded.
The research team specifically cited the EM-CSYS-6 EasyMount® Ussing Chamber (Physiologic Instruments) as the core technology used to record short-circuit current (Isc) in primary airway cultures. This is the gold-standard method to confirm whether a therapy restores the faulty CFTR channel.
“When the stakes are high, researchers need data they can trust. Our EasyMount systems give scientists reproducible, high-fidelity current measurements that turn hypotheses into proof.” - Stephen Thompson, PhD
A Platform for Discovery
By enabling this level of precision, EasyMount chambers are supporting not just one paper, but a growing body of cystic fibrosis research worldwide. From drug screening to patient-derived cell testing, they remain the platform researchers depend on when evaluating the most promising new therapies.
About Physiologic Instruments
Physiologic Instruments designs and manufactures Ussing chambers, voltage-current clamps, and data acquisition systems for epithelial transport and barrier function research. Our systems are trusted by academic labs, pharmaceutical companies, and clinical researchers across the globe.