Nestin promotes pulmonary fibrosisviafacilitating recycling of TGF-β receptor I

BACKGROUND: Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is a progressive fibrotic lung disease that is characterised by aberrant proliferation of activated myofibroblasts and pathological remodelling of the extracellular matrix. Previous studies have revealed that the intermediate filament protein nestin plays key roles in tissue regeneration and wound healing in different organs. Whether nestin plays a critical role in the pathogenesis of IPF needs to be clarified. METHODS: . RESULTS: , we found that intratracheal administration of AAV6-mediated nestin knockdown significantly alleviated pulmonary fibrosis in multiple experimental mice models. CONCLUSION: Our findings reveal a pro-fibrotic function of nestin partially through facilitating Rab11-dependent recycling of TβRI and shed new light on pulmonary fibrosis treatment.