[A preliminary study of CTGF in bleomycin-induced mouse pulmonary fibrosis]
Lei Zhang1, Hui-ping Lu, Guo-xiang Lai
1Department of Respiratory Disease, Fuzhou General Hospital of Nanjing Military Command, Fuzhou 350025, China. sunray168@126.com
Aim:
To investigate CTGF's role in bleomycin-induced pulmonary fibrosis.
Methods:
Kunming mice were intratracheally administered with bleomycin to establish pulmonary fibrosis model. The expression of CTGF was studied by immunohistochemical method and RT-PCR. The degree of fibrosis was evaluated by pulmonary hydroxyproline assay.
Results:
CTGF protein and mRNA were not expressed in normal mice. However, they were detected in pulmonary fibrotic mice from day 7 after bleomycin treatment, and increased as fibrosis developed (P <0.01). CTGF protein's expression was correlated with hydroxyproline content in lung tissue (r=0.92, P <0.01).
Conclusion:
CTGF plays a role in pulmonary fibrosis. Detection of CTGF may be an early and sensitive marker for evaluating the occurrence and development of pulmonary fibrosis.
