Chemokines in tissue fibrosis

Fibrosis or scarring of diverse organs and tissues is considered as a pathologic consequence of a chronically altered wound healing response which is tightly linked to inflammation and angiogenesis. The recruitment of immune cells, local proliferation of fibroblasts and the consecutive accumulation of extracellular matrix proteins are common pathophysiological hallmarks of tissue fibrosis, irrespective of the organ involved. Chemokines, a family of chemotactic cytokines, appear to be central mediators of the initiation as well as progression of these biological processes. Traditionally chemokines have only been considered to play a critical role in orchestrating the influx of immune cells to sites of tissue injury. However, within the last years, further aspects of chemokine biology including fibroblast activation and angiogenesis have been deciphered in tissue fibrosis of many different organs. Interestingly, certain chemokines appear to mediate common effects in liver, kidney, lung, and skin of various animal models, while others mediate tissue specific effects. These aspects have to be kept in mind when extrapolating data of animal studies to early human trials. Nevertheless, the further understanding of chemokine effects in tissue fibrosis might be an attractive approach for identifying novel therapeutic targets in chronic organ damage associated with high morbidity and mortality. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled: Fibrosis: Translation of basic research to human disease.