Fibrosis is a hallmark of many chronic diseases. The working group of DZHK researchers from Heidelberg/Mannheim and Frankfurt was able to demonstrate the involvement of endothelial cells in fibrotic processes in the mouse model through specific overexpression and deletion of the transcription factor Sox9. The results indicate that endothelial Sox9 plays a role as a fibrosis-promoting factor in various mouse organs during the disease and that endothelial cells, alongside fibroblasts, are an important regulator of fibrosis.
Link to the original publication: Endothelial cells drive organ fibrosis in mice by inducing expression of the transcription factor SOX9 (Trogisch et al., 2024)
Link to the press release: Small cell population with a big impact