title: Fibrocytes and the tissue niche in lung repair.
abstract: Human fibrocytes are bone marrow-derived mesenchymal progenitor cells that express a variety of markers related to leukocytes, hematopoietic stem cells and a diverse set of fibroblast phenotypes. Fibrocytes can be recruited from the circulation to the tissue where they further can differentiate and proliferate into various mesenchymal cell types depending on the tissue niche. This local tissue niche is important because it modulates the fibrocytes and coordinates their role in tissue behaviour and repair. However, plasticity of a niche may be co-opted in chronic airway diseases such as asthma, idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis and obliterative bronchiolitis. This review will therefore focus on a possible role of fibrocytes in pathological tissue repair processes in those diseases.
authors.affiliation: Lung Biology Unit, Dept, of Experimental Medical Science, Lund University, Sweden. Annika.Andersson_Sjoland@med.lu.se
authors.forename: Annika
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Andersson-Sjöland
authors.forename: Kristian
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Nihlberg
authors.forename: Leif
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Eriksson
authors.forename: Leif
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Bjermer
authors.forename: Gunilla
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Westergren-Thorsson
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002454:Cell Differentiation; D002465:Cell Movement; D049109:Cell Proliferation; D006801:Humans; D008168:Lung / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology*; D008171:Lung Diseases / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology*; D059630:Mesenchymal Stem Cells / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology*; D010641:Phenotype; D012038:Regeneration; D015398:Signal Transduction; D055153:Stem Cell Niche