American journal of respiratory and critical care medicine
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Am. J. Respir. Crit. Care Med. · Aug 2021
CD148 Deficiency in Fibroblasts Promotes the Development of Pulmonary Fibrosis.
Rationale: CD148/PTRJ (receptor-like protein tyrosine phosphatase η) exerts antifibrotic effects in experimental pulmonary fibrosis via interactions with its ligand syndecan-2; however, the role of CD148 in human pulmonary fibrosis remains incompletely characterized. Objectives: We investigated the role of CD148 in the profibrotic phenotype of fibroblasts in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF). Methods: Conditional CD148 fibroblast-specific knockout mice were generated and exposed to bleomycin and then assessed for pulmonary fibrosis. ⋯ In precision-cut lung slices from patients with IPF and control patients, SDC2-pep attenuated profibrotic gene expression in IPF and normal lungs stimulated with profibrotic stimuli. Conclusions: Lung fibroblast CD148 activation reduces p62 accumulation, which exerts antifibrotic effects by inhibiting NF-κB-mediated profibrotic gene expression. Targeting the CD148 phosphatase with activating ligands such as SDC2-pep may represent a potential therapeutic strategy in IPF.