SPP1 promotes the polarization of M2 macrophages through the Jak2/Stat3 signaling pathway and accelerates the progression of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis

Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is a fatal pulmonary disease that requires further investigation to understand its pathogenesis. The present study demonstrated that secreted phosphoprotein 1 (SPP1) was aberrantly highly expressed in the lung tissue of patients with IPF and was significantly positively associated with macrophage and T‑cell activity. Cell localization studies revealed that SPP1 was primarily overexpressed in macrophages, rather than in T cells. Functionally, knocking down SPP1 expression