The study reveals a new mechanism for the development of fibrosis in skin tissues and could potentially be relevant to other organs that develop fibrosis such as the lungs, heart, liver and kidney, the researchers said. The research was published in Nature Communications.
Fibrosis is a condition in which tough, fibrous connective tissues develop in an organ, similar to scar tissues that form after injuries. The disease can affect various tissues, including those of the skin, lungs, heart and liver. Due to the development of tough, fibrous matter, fibrosis causes the affected tissues to stiffen, swell, and eventually lose their normal functions. The exact mechanism by which fibrosis develops is not yet clearly understood, and there are no proven cures or treatments for the disease.
In this study, researchers discovered that a molecule called fibulin-5 played a role in the development of skin fibrosis in mice. Fibulin-5 is responsible for the formation of elastin, a protein that enables skin to bounce back to its original shape after being stretched. Elastin is a small component of connective tissues in the body, and little is known about its contribution to fibrosis.
Since a large component of connective tissue is made of collagen, most research on the underlying cause of fibrosis has so far focused on the overproduction of collagen. However, the role of less abundant proteins like elastin has been largely ignored, until now.
By focusing on elastin, the team discovered that the development of fibrosis in skin tissues was linked to a particular molecule: fibulin-5. The researchers studied mice that were genetically engineered to develop skin fibrosis and found substantially higher levels of fibulin-5 in their skin tissues than in normal mice. High levels of fibulin-5 were also found in the skin tissues of human patients with skin fibrosis. Researchers explained that elevated levels of fibulin-5 caused elastin to form in abnormally large amounts, and that higher elastin levels likely contributed to increased skin tissue inflammation and stiffening.
Researchers also demonstrated that removing fibulin-5 from the genetically engineered mice before they developed skin fibrosis helped prevent all the symptoms of skin fibrosis - including skin tissue inflammation and stiffening - from occurring.
As a next step, the researchers are exploring methods to inhibit the increase of fibulin-5 and determine whether fibulin-5 plays a role in fibrosis development in other organs besides the skin. One of their goals is to translate this proof of concept study on mice to clinical trials in the future.
Based on material originally posted by University of California - San Diego.