Written by Chloe Pyle
Edited by Lauren Headley
Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is a progressive lung disease of unknown cause, which results in hardening of the lung parenchyma due to collagen deposition and loss of pulmonary function. The role of the immune system in lung fibrosis is not well defined, although previous studies have shown that immune suppression is associated with decreased survival in acute exacerbations of IPF. The new study we discussed (1) addresses the contribution of population of immune cells, those that express the molecule ICOS, on the outcome of acute lung injury in a mouse model of lung injury and fibrosis.