Mechanisms of fibrotic tissue remodelling: insights from systemic sclerosis

Systemic sclerosis (SSc) is a prototypical systemic immune-mediated fibrosing disease that affects the skin, the lungs, the heart, the kidneys and the intestinal tract. Similar to many other fibrotic diseases, SSc is associated with high morbidity and mortality and therapeutic options are limited. Fibrosis arises from a complex interplay of vascular damage, inflammation and prolonged, misdirected repair responses. The progressive accumulation of extracellular matrix perturbs the physiological tissue architecture and commonly leads to failure of the affected organs. Understanding the mechanisms of fibrotic tissue remodelling can lead to the identification of preclinical targets. Novel fibrosis-promoting cell subpopulations, the interplay of fibroblasts with B cells and macrophages, the nerve-fibroblast axis, matrikines and matricryptins, senescence, profibrotic transcription factors, developmental pathways and epigenetic tissue memory are all important drivers of fibrotic tissue remodelling that might offer potential for novel therapies to improve outcomes for patients with SSc and possibly other fibrotic conditions.