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PDGF-Mediated Regulation of Liver Fibrosis

  • Cytokines That Affect Liver Fibrosis and Activation of Hepatic Myofibroblasts (Tatiana Kisseleva, Section Editor)
  • Published:
Current Pathobiology Reports

Abstract

The activation of mesenchymal cells to matrix secreting myofibroblasts is central to the initiation and development of liver fibrosis. Understanding the mechanisms that govern this process is a vital step in the rational development of new anti-fibrotic therapies. Platelet-derived growth factors (PDGFs) and their cognate receptors play a key role in hepatic stellate cell and liver myofibroblast biology. In this review, we outline the major hepatic cellular sources of PDGFs and their modes of action during liver fibrogenesis. Furthermore, we examine how the PDGF pathway may represent a tractable anti-fibrotic target, and how the PDGF receptors may be harnessed to allow cell-specific delivery of therapeutics to help treat patients with liver fibrosis.

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Acknowledgments

The authors acknowledge the support of CORE/Children’s Liver Disease Foundation and the Wellcome Trust.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. MRC Centre for Inflammation Research, The Queen’s Medical Research Institute, University of Edinburgh, 47 Little France Crescent, Edinburgh, EH16 4TJ, UK

    Ross Dobie, John Connelly & Neil C. Henderson

Authors
  1. Ross Dobie
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  2. John Connelly
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  3. Neil C. Henderson
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Neil C. Henderson.

Additional information

This article is part of the Topical Collection on Cytokines That Affect Liver Fibrosis and Activation of Hepatic Myofibroblasts.

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Dobie, R., Connelly, J. & Henderson, N.C. PDGF-Mediated Regulation of Liver Fibrosis. Curr Pathobiol Rep 3, 225–233 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40139-015-0096-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40139-015-0096-9

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