Lenalidomide attenuates post-inflammation pulmonary fibrosis through blocking NF-κB signaling pathway

Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is a fatal and age-related pulmonary disease. Nintedanib is a receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitor, and one of the only two listed drugs against IPF. Regorafenib is a novel, orally active, multi-kinase inhibitor that has similar targets to nintedanib and is applied to treat colorectal cancer and gastrointestinal stromal tumors in patients. In this study, we first identified that regorafenib could alleviate bleomycin-induced pulmonary fibrosis in mice. The in vivo experiments indicated that regorafenib suppresses collagen accumulation and myofibroblast activation. Further in vitro mechanism studies showed that regorafenib inhibits the activation and migration of myofibroblasts and extracellular matrix production, mainly through suppressing the transforming growth factor (TGF)-β1/Smad and non-Smad signaling pathways. In vitro studies have also indicated that regorafenib could augment autophagy in myofibroblasts by suppressing TGF-β1/mTOR (mechanistic target of rapamycin) signaling, and could promote apoptosis in myofibroblasts. In conclusion, regorafenib attenuates bleomycin-induced pulmonary fibrosis by suppressing the TGF-β1 signaling pathway.

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Chelerythrine Ameliorates Pulmonary Fibrosis via Activating the Nrf2/ARE Signaling Pathway

Cell Biochemistry and Biophysics ◽

10.1007/s12013-021-00967-0 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Ling Peng ◽

Li Wen ◽

Qingfeng Shi ◽

Feng Gao ◽

Bin Huang ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Pulmonary Fibrosis ◽

Signaling Pathway

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The Pivotal Role of Signal Regulatory Protein α in Exacerbating Pulmonary Fibrosis Complicated with Bacterial Infection

Journal of Immune Research ◽

10.26420/jimmunres.2021.1039 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 7 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Yamaguchi R ◽

◽

Sakamoto A ◽

Haraguchi M ◽

Narahara S ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Immune Response ◽

Pulmonary Fibrosis ◽

Bacterial Infection ◽

Signaling Pathway ◽

Regulatory Protein ◽

Interferon Regulatory Factor ◽

Regulatory Factor ◽

Interferon Regulatory Factor 1 ◽

Th1 Immune Response

The pathogenesis of pulmonary fibrosis remains unknown. However, bacterial infections in patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis are a serious complication that exacerbate the disease. Serum levels of Surfactant Protein D (SPD) are known to be elevated in patients with pulmonary fibrosis, but the role of SPD in pulmonary fibrosis complicated with bacterial infection is unknown. Lipopolysaccharide upregulates Interleukin (IL)-12p40 expression and IL-12p40 promotes Interferon Gamma (IFNγ) production to induce the T helper cell 1 (Th1) immune response via Signal Transducers and Activators of Transcription 4 (STAT4) signaling. A lack of IFNγ shifts the immune response from Th1 to Th2. IL-4 is a profibrotic Th2 cytokine that activates fibroblasts. Granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor induced by IL-1 and TNFα during the Th1 immune response upregulates Signal Regulatory Protein α (SIRPα) expression. Interferon Regulatory Factor 1 (IRF1) functions as the promoter activator of IL-12p40 after stimulation with LPS. SPD is a ligand for SIRPα, and SPD/SIRPα ligation activates the Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinase (MAPK)/Extracellular Signal-Related Kinase (ERK) signal cascade; ERK downregulates Interferon Regulatory Factor 1 (IRF1) expression. Consequently, the SPD/SIRPα signaling pathway decreases IL-12p40 production in human macrophages after exposure to LPS. IL-12p40 is a key immunoregulatory factor in bacterial infection that promotes production of IFNγ by T lymphocytes. Pulmonary fibroblasts are activated by IL-4/IL-4R ligation. IFNγ induces IRF1 via STAT1 signaling, and IRF1 acts as the promoter repressor of IL-4 to attenuate its production. IFNγ also inhibits IL-4R expression. A reduction in IFNγ induced by IL-12p40 deficiency via the SPD/SIRPα signaling pathway enhances IL-4 and IL-4R expression to augment the activity of fibroblasts. This finding indicates that pulmonary fibrosis is exacerbated by SPD/SIRPα signaling during bacterial infection.

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