A WNT mimetic with broad spectrum FZD-specificity decreases fibrosis and improves function in a pulmonary damage model.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Wnt/β-catenin signaling is critical for lung development and AT2 stem cell maintenance in adults, but excessive pathway activation has been associated with pulmonary fibrosis, both in animal models and human diseases such as idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF). IPF is a detrimental interstitial lung disease, and although two approved drugs limit functional decline, transplantation is the only treatment that extends survival, highlighting the need for regenerative therapies.

Methods

Using our antibody-based platform of Wnt/β-catenin modulators, we investigated the ability of a pathway antagonist and pathway activators to reduce pulmonary fibrosis in the acute bleomycin model, and we tested the ability of a WNT mimetic to affect alveolar organoid cultures.

Result

SUBMITTER: Patel M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10985870 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature