Composition of TWIST1 dimers regulates fibroblast activation and tissue fibrosis

Conclusions
Our data identify TWIST1 as a central pro-fibrotic factor in SSc, which facilitates fibroblast activation by amplifying TGFβ signalling. Targeting of TWIST1 may thus be a novel approach to normalise aberrant TGFβ signalling in SSc.

Source: Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases - December 8, 2016 Category: Rheumatology Authors: Palumbo-Zerr, K., Soare, A., Zerr, P., Liebl, A., Mancuso, R., Tomcik, M., Sumova, B., Dees, C., Chen, C.-W., Wohlfahrt, T., Mallano, T., Distler, A., Ramming, A., Gelse, K., Mihai, C., Distler, O., Schett, G., Distler, J. H. W. Tags: Immunology (including allergy), Connective tissue disease Basic and translational research Source Type: research