OPN is upregulated in the lungs of patients with pulmonary hypertension (PH) associated with pulmonary fibrosis, suggesting that the lung is a source of OPN.
Comparison between WT and Opn KO mice revealed that OPN critically regulated MWCNT-induced lung fibrosis as indicated by reduced fibrotic focus formation and myofibroblast accumulation in Opn KO lungs.
Atomic layer deposition coating of carbon nanotubes with aluminum oxide alters pro-fibrogenic cytokine expression by human mononuclear phagocytes in vitro and reduces lung fibrosis in mice in vivo.
The matrix metalloproteinase-7 (MMP-7) and osteopontin (OPN) are both multifunctional proteins with roles in inflammation, cell proliferation, tissue remodeling and so on, implicated in the pathogenesis of numerous conditions including pulmonary fibrosis.