Open AccessRole of prostaglandins in fibroblast activation and fibrosis
Author(s) -
Stratton Richard,
Shiwen Xu
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
journal of cell communication and signaling
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.329
H-Index - 44
eISSN - 1873-961X
pISSN - 1873-9601
DOI - 10.1007/s12079-010-0089-8
Subject(s) - fibroblast , fibrosis , medicine , bioinformatics , pharmacology , cancer research , biology , genetics , cell culture
Fibroblasts release prostaglandins and express a range of prostanoid receptors. However the importance of prostaglandins in fibroblast biology have not been fully explored. Our studies showed that the prostaglandin metabolite PGI 2 blocks the activation of fibroblasts, antagonising the induction of Ras/MEK/ERK signalling by TGFβ. Endogenous PGI 2 acts so as to limit the activation of fibroblasts following tissue injury. By contrast PGE 2 induced in injured tissues or disease states may promote recruitment of inflammatory cells and lead to secondary activation of fibroblasts. The effects of PGI 2 on cell signaling could be manipulated to inhibit fibrosis in patients.