The role of strain variation in murine bleomycin-induced pulmonary fibrosis.

In the present study, mice have been used to study the effect of strain variation on the development of pulmonary fibrosis induced by a single intratracheal administration of bleomycin. The fibrotic response was quantitated by biochemical measurement of collagen synthesis and deposition. Results indicate that variations in these parameters of fibrosis are evident depending on the strain being tested. The C57BL/6 were high responders. DBA/2 and Swiss mice were intermediate responders, and BALB/c mice were low responders. These findings indicate that genetic variation influences the development of bleomycin-induced pulmonary fibrosis. Also, because certain aspects of the fibrotic response in this model are similar to those found in other conditions, this model may be useful as a basis to study the role of genetics in general fibrotic mechanisms.