Role of Fibroblasts in Tissue Regeneration and Fibrosis

A Special Issue of Biology (ISSN 2079-7737) belonging to the section "Medical Biology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 November 2026 | Viewed by 3091

Editor


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Guest Editor
1. Laboratorio de Fibrosis y Cáncer, Facultad de Medicina y Cirugía, Universidad Autónoma Benito Juárez de Oaxaca, Ex Hacienda de Aguilera S/N, Sur, San Felipe del Agua, Oaxaca 68020, Mexico
2. SECIHTI-Facultad de Medicina y Cirugía, Universidad Autónoma Benito Juárez de Oaxaca, Ex Hacienda de Aguilera S/N, Sur, San Felipe del Agua, Oaxaca 68020, Mexico
Interests: fibroblast; bioinformatics; extracelular vesicles; pulmonary fibrosis; inflammation and repurposed drugs
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Fibroblasts play a central role in tissue repair, regeneration, and fibrosis by regulating extracellular matrix remodeling, inflammatory responses, and cellular crosstalk within the tissue microenvironment. Increasing evidence highlights fibroblasts as highly heterogeneous and plastic cells whose context-dependent activation determines whether tissue healing resolves or progresses toward chronic fibrosis. Understanding the molecular and cellular mechanisms governing fibroblast behavior is therefore critical for elucidating fundamental biological processes and identifying novel therapeutic targets.

This Special Issue, “Role of Fibroblasts in Tissue Regeneration and Fibrosis,” aims to bring together recent advances in fibroblast biology, focusing on signaling pathways, regulatory networks, and intercellular communication involved in physiological regeneration and pathological fibrotic remodeling. We seek submissions emphasizing mechanistic insights, experimental models, and integrative approaches to tissue homeostasis and disease.

We welcome original research articles and reviews addressing fibroblast function across organs and disease contexts, including emerging omics-based and systems biology approaches. Suggested themes include the following:

  • Fibroblast heterogeneity and lineage specification;
  • Fibroblast activation, senescence, and plasticity;
  • Fibroblast–immune cell interactions;
  • Extracellular matrix remodeling and mechanotransduction;
  • Single-cell and spatial omics of fibroblast populations;
  • Fibroblasts in organ-specific fibrosis (lung, liver, kidney, heart, skin);
  • Signaling pathways regulating fibroblast fate (e.g., TGF-β, Wnt, Hippo);
  • Therapeutic strategies targeting fibroblast-driven fibrosis.

We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Dr. Rafael Baltierrez-Hoyos
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • fibroblasts
  • tissue regeneration
  • fibrosis
  • cellular heterogeneity
  • extracellular matrix
  • cell signaling
  • mechanotransduction
  • omics
  • tissue remodeling
  • systems biology

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Review

19 pages, 10326 KB  
Review
Molecular Convergence Between Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis and Its Comorbidities Reveals Interactions Between Pulmonary and Systemic Regulatory Programs
by Rafael Baltiérrez-Hoyos, Juan Manuel Velázquez-Enríquez, Jovito Cesar Santos-Álvarez, Dulce Natividad Jiménez-Gómez, Alma Aurora Ramírez-Hernández, Karina González-García, Cecilia Zertuche-Martínez, Itayetzi Reyes-Avendaño, Edilburga Reyes-Jiménez and Verónica Rocío Vásquez-Garzón
Biology 2026, 15(13), 1044; https://doi.org/10.3390/biology15131044 - 30 Jun 2026
Viewed by 2416
Abstract
Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is a progressive interstitial lung disease characterized by high mortality and marked clinical heterogeneity. A defining yet insufficiently understood feature of IPF is its frequent coexistence with pulmonary and extrapulmonary comorbidities. However, the molecular basis that underlies this multisystem [...] Read more.
Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is a progressive interstitial lung disease characterized by high mortality and marked clinical heterogeneity. A defining yet insufficiently understood feature of IPF is its frequent coexistence with pulmonary and extrapulmonary comorbidities. However, the molecular basis that underlies this multisystem involvement remains unclear. We applied an integrative systems-level framework that combines lung-derived transcriptomic datasets with curated disease–gene associations across major IPF-associated comorbidities. Network organization and functional stratification analyses were used to characterize shared and disease-specific molecular modules, and independent transcriptomic datasets were analyzed to evaluate the consistency of these patterns. These analyses revealed structured molecular convergence between IPF and its comorbidities organized into two interacting biological programs: a lung-enriched fibrotic–mechanical program and a systemically distributed neuroimmune–metabolic program. These programs are interconnected through a shared regulatory interface that includes IL6, AKT1, TGFB1 and STAT3. This organization was consistently observed across independent datasets. IPF emerges from the interaction between pulmonary and systemic regulatory programs rather than isolated lung-restricted mechanisms. This framework provides a basis for understanding disease heterogeneity and comorbidity burden, with potential implications for stratification and therapeutic targeting. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Role of Fibroblasts in Tissue Regeneration and Fibrosis)
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