The aims of the current investigation were to determine whether functional polymorphisms in the tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) gene at position -308; in the transforming growth factor-beta 1 (TGF-beta1) gene at positions -509, +869 (codon 10), and +915 (codon 25); in the interleukin-10 (IL-10) gene at position -1,082, -819 and -592; and in the intron 1 of the interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma) gene at position +874 are associated with silicosis and PTB.
Transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1) alters the fibroblast phenotype by promoting transdifferentiation into myofibroblasts, which exhibit the ability to promote collagen synthesis and extracellular matrix (ECM) deposition, thereby playing a significant role in the pathology of silicosis.
Our data suggest that RLX may inhibit TGF-β1-mediated fibrosis during the process of silicosis, providing evidence for the protective effect of RLX on silica-induced pulmonary fibrosis.
Down-regulation of TGF-beta 1 expression in macrophages by taurine and niacin could attenuate silica-induced pulmonary fibroblasts proliferation in vitro, which may be of therapeutic potential for early stage silicosis.