A RIKEN-developed mouse model of an enigmatic lung disease promises to unlock new biological insights and catalyze the development of treatments for millions affected globally. The research is published in Nature Communications.
Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is a progressive lung disease in which scarring of the lungs makes breathing increasingly difficult. The cause is unknown with no cure, and it often leads to eventual death.
About a decade ago, Kazuyo Moro of the RIKEN Center for Integrative Medical Sciences and her colleagues investigated the role that a special population of immune cells, known as group 2 innate lymphoid cells (ILC2s), play in the body’s response to lung infections. As part of that effort, they created mice lacking two key immune-related genes.
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