When inflammation in the body goes unchecked, it can cause fibrosis, or tissue scarring that may lead to organ dysfunction or even failure. This can happen in conditions such as inflammatory bowel diseases (ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease), chronic viral infections, interstitial lung fibrosis, chronic autoimmune skin diseases such as scleroderma, and scars associated with heart disease. Patients have few options for treating fibrosis, but new research points to a molecular pathway that could open the door to future treatment possibilities.

“Anywhere we see chronic inflammation, fibrosis is a major issue,” said study co-senior author Ramnik Xavier. “There aren’t any treatments or therapeutics to directly address fibrosis, so there’s much room to make progress and improve health for patients with chronic inflammatory disease.”