Purpose of review: Pulmonary fibrosis is a chronic and progressive lung disease involving unclear pathological mechanisms. The present review presents and discusses the major and recent advances in our knowledge of the pathogenesis of lung fibrosis.
Recent findings: The past months have deepened our understanding on the cellular actors of fibrosis with a better characterization of the abnormal lung epithelial cells observed during lung fibrosis. Better insight has been gained into fibroblast biology and the role of immune cells during fibrosis. Mechanistically, senescence appears as a key driver of the fibrotic process. Extracellular vesicles have been discovered as participating in the impaired cellular cross-talk during fibrosis and deeper understanding has been made on developmental signaling in lung fibrosis.
Summary: This review emphasizes the contribution of different cell types and mechanisms during pulmonary fibrosis, highlights new insights for identification of potential therapeutic strategies, and underlines where future research is needed to answer remaining open questions.