About this Research Topic
Pulmonary fibrosis (PF) is an interstitial lung disease characterized by progressive respiratory failure, primarily affecting older individuals. The lung tissue undergoes extensive remodeling, resulting in significant alterations to normal pulmonary anatomy and function. Recent advancements in population genetics, transcriptomics, and cell and organoid culture systems have provided new insights into the biology of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF). These studies have highlighted potential causative pathways involving telomeres, integrins, matrix metalloproteinases, TGFβ, WNT, oxidative stress, endoplasmic reticulum stress, cellular senescence, and fibroblast persistence, among others. Despite these discoveries, no single dominant process has been identified to fully explain lung fibrosis.
PF, particularly IPF, is histologically characterized by sporadic areas of dense fibrosis and honeycomb metaplasia occurring adjacent to the normal-appearing lung parenchyma, indicating simultaneous stages of disease progression. This tissue heterogeneity implies that cellular proximity and lung structural information are essential for accurate result interpretation, which can often be lost in bulk and single-cell omics techniques. However, several methods for interpreting transcriptional, proteomic, and metabolomic data within anatomical contexts have emerged, supported by rapid advancements in systems for data measurement and analysis. Spatial insights, in particular, offer an effective method for researchers to visualize tissue architecture, identify cellular interactions, and map disease progression. In combination with advanced imaging techniques, such as synchrotron beamlight and confocal microscopy, as well as omics technologies such as transcriptomics and proteomics, a spatial understanding of PF contributes to a holistic understanding of the biological landscape of PF.
In this Research Topic of Frontiers in Physiology, we invite submissions of innovative articles highlighting advances in spatially understanding IPF. We hope that the authors will contribute to an integrated understanding of the cellular and anatomical pathobiology of IPF. We welcome original research articles, reviews, and new methodologies focusing on spatial data analysis. Themes of particular interest include, but are not limited to,
• Single cell or single nuclear RNAseq in lung interstitial disease
• Single cell or single nuclear epigenetic approaches in interstitial disease
• Diagnostic or research imaging techniques to determine stages of PF
• Differential tissue digestion techniques enabling tissue compartment analysis in IPF
• Spatial transcriptomics and its applications in IPF
• Proteomic and metabolomic mapping in lung tissue
• Integrative and computational analysis of omics data within an anatomical context
• Novel imaging methodologies for studying lung fibrosis
PF, particularly IPF, is histologically characterized by sporadic areas of dense fibrosis and honeycomb metaplasia occurring adjacent to the normal-appearing lung parenchyma, indicating simultaneous stages of disease progression. This tissue heterogeneity implies that cellular proximity and lung structural information are essential for accurate result interpretation, which can often be lost in bulk and single-cell omics techniques. However, several methods for interpreting transcriptional, proteomic, and metabolomic data within anatomical contexts have emerged, supported by rapid advancements in systems for data measurement and analysis. Spatial insights, in particular, offer an effective method for researchers to visualize tissue architecture, identify cellular interactions, and map disease progression. In combination with advanced imaging techniques, such as synchrotron beamlight and confocal microscopy, as well as omics technologies such as transcriptomics and proteomics, a spatial understanding of PF contributes to a holistic understanding of the biological landscape of PF.
In this Research Topic of Frontiers in Physiology, we invite submissions of innovative articles highlighting advances in spatially understanding IPF. We hope that the authors will contribute to an integrated understanding of the cellular and anatomical pathobiology of IPF. We welcome original research articles, reviews, and new methodologies focusing on spatial data analysis. Themes of particular interest include, but are not limited to,
• Single cell or single nuclear RNAseq in lung interstitial disease
• Single cell or single nuclear epigenetic approaches in interstitial disease
• Diagnostic or research imaging techniques to determine stages of PF
• Differential tissue digestion techniques enabling tissue compartment analysis in IPF
• Spatial transcriptomics and its applications in IPF
• Proteomic and metabolomic mapping in lung tissue
• Integrative and computational analysis of omics data within an anatomical context
• Novel imaging methodologies for studying lung fibrosis
Keywords: idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), progressive pulmonary fibrosis (PPF), Pulmonary Fibrosis (PF), Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA), Interstitial Lung Disease (ILD)
Important Note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.
