Cloned airway basal progenitor cells to repair fibrotic lung through re-epithelialization.

ABSTRACT: Irreversible damage of the lung epithelium in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) patients causes high mortality worldwide, with no lung repair approaches available currently. Here we show that in murine and monkey models, the KRT5⁺ P63⁺ progenitor cells in airway basal layer can enter the alveolar area post fibrotic injury. Aided with an automated culture system, we clone and characterize airway basal progenitor cells from 44 donors with various lung conditions. Transplantation of human progenitor cells into the mouse lung efficiently re-epithelializes the injured alveolar area, forms new respiratory tract and saccule-like structures, which ameliorates fibrotic lesions and improves survival of mice. Mechanistically, the engrafted human progenitor cells do not functio

SUBMITTER: Zhao Y 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11790844 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature