Our Impact
TTP currently funds research at three leading centers studying telomere-related pulmonary fibrosis:
Dr. Christine Kim Garcia, Columbia University Irving Medical Center
Dr. Garcia’s lab works out which patients have telomere-related and other genetic forms of pulmonary fibrosis. It also uses telomere length and genetic testing to predict how the disease will progress and to guide care, such as which immunosuppressants to avoid and when to refer a patient for lung transplant. Her team’s large family genetic datasets and biobanks lay the groundwork for selecting the right patients for future telomere-targeted therapies. Separately, the Harrington Family Early Career Pulmonary Fibrosis Investigators Fund supports an early-career physician specializing in pulmonary fibrosis in Columbia’s Division of Pulmonary, Allergy, and Critical Care Medicine.
Dr. Suneet Agarwal, Boston Children’s Hospital / Harvard Medical School
Dr. Agarwal’s team is developing ways to restore telomere maintenance without gene therapy:
PAPD5 inhibitors, oral small molecules that stabilize the RNA component of telomerase
metabolic approaches using thymidine to support telomere maintenance
engineered TERC (eTERC), a synthetic RNA that gives cells the template to rebuild their telomeres
The thymidine approach entered a Phase 1 clinical trial in 2025.
Dr. Mary Armanios, Johns Hopkins Telomere Center
Dr. Armanios’s work focuses on three things:
how specific mutations (TERT, TERC, RTEL1, POT1 and others) cause disease and how they show up in patients
improving and standardizing telomere length testing (flow-FISH), so patients can be reliably identified
how short telomeres should shape decisions about lung transplant, immunosuppression and cancer risk
Other collaborations / affiliations
TTP is a proud member of the Global Genes Global Advocacy Alliance, a global community of non-profit organizations and support groups that are committed to changing the way the world tackles rare diseases.
Researchers and clinicians working on telomere-related pulmonary fibrosis are welcome to reach out through our Contact Us page.