Sahin Hacer, Wasmuth Hermann E
Medical Department III, University Hospital Aachen, RWTH Aachen, Germany.
Biochim Biophys Acta. 2013 Jul;1832(7):1041-8. doi: 10.1016/j.bbadis.2012.11.004. Epub 2012 Nov 15.
Fibrosis or scarring of diverse organs and tissues is considered as a pathologic consequence of a chronically altered wound healing response which is tightly linked to inflammation and angiogenesis. The recruitment of immune cells, local proliferation of fibroblasts and the consecutive accumulation of extracellular matrix proteins are common pathophysiological hallmarks of tissue fibrosis, irrespective of the organ involved. Chemokines, a family of chemotactic cytokines, appear to be central mediators of the initiation as well as progression of these biological processes. Traditionally chemokines have only been considered to play a critical role in orchestrating the influx of immune cells to sites of tissue injury. However, within the last years, further aspects of chemokine biology including fibroblast activation and angiogenesis have been deciphered in tissue fibrosis of many different organs. Interestingly, certain chemokines appear to mediate common effects in liver, kidney, lung, and skin of various animal models, while others mediate tissue specific effects. These aspects have to be kept in mind when extrapolating data of animal studies to early human trials. Nevertheless, the further understanding of chemokine effects in tissue fibrosis might be an attractive approach for identifying novel therapeutic targets in chronic organ damage associated with high morbidity and mortality. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled: Fibrosis: Translation of basic research to human disease.
多种器官和组织的纤维化或瘢痕形成被认为是慢性改变的伤口愈合反应的病理结果，这与炎症和血管生成密切相关。免疫细胞的募集、成纤维细胞的局部增殖以及细胞外基质蛋白的连续积累是组织纤维化常见的病理生理特征，与所涉及的器官无关。趋化因子是一类趋化性细胞因子，似乎是这些生物学过程起始和进展的核心介质。传统上，趋化因子仅被认为在协调免疫细胞流入组织损伤部位中起关键作用。然而，在过去几年中，趋化因子生物学的其他方面，包括成纤维细胞活化和血管生成，已在许多不同器官的组织纤维化中得到阐释。有趣的是，某些趋化因子似乎在各种动物模型的肝脏、肾脏、肺和皮肤中介导共同作用，而其他趋化因子则介导组织特异性作用。在将动物研究数据外推至早期人体试验时，必须牢记这些方面。尽管如此，进一步了解趋化因子在组织纤维化中的作用可能是识别与高发病率和死亡率相关的慢性器官损伤新治疗靶点的有吸引力的方法。本文是名为：纤维化：基础研究向人类疾病的转化的特刊的一部分。
