Pulmonary fibrosis is a hallmark of diseases such as systemic sclerosis (SSc, scleroderma) and idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF). To date, the therapeutic options for patients with pulmonary fibrosis are limited, and organ transplantation remains the most effective option. Insulin-like growth factor-binding protein 5 (IGFBP-5) is a conserved member of the IGFBP family of proteins that is overexpressed in SSc and IPF. In this study, we demonstrate that both exogenous and adenovirally expressed IGFBP-5 promote fibrosis by increasing the production of extracellular matrix (ECM) genes and the expression of pro-fibrotic genes in primary human lung fibroblasts. IGFBP-5 increased expression of the pro-fibrotic growth factor CTGF and levels of the matrix crosslinking enzyme lysyl oxidase (LOX). Silencing of IGFBP-5 had different effects in lung fibroblasts from normal donors and patients with SSc or IPF. Moreover, we show that IGFBP-5 increases expression of ECM genes, CTGF, and LOX in human lung tissues maintained in organ culture. Together, our data extend our previous findings and demonstrate that IGFBP-5 exerts its pro-fibrotic activity by directly inducing expression of ECM and pro-fibrotic genes. Further, IGFBP-5 promotes its own expression, generating a positive feedback loop. This suggests that IGFBP-5 likely acts in concert with other growth factors to drive fibrosis and tissue remodeling.
Keywords: extracellular matrix (ECM); fibrosis; idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF); insulin-like growth factor binding protein-5 (IGFBP-5); systemic sclerosis (SSc).