Repairing damaged lungs using regenerative therapy

Current Opinion in Pharmacology, vol. 59, pp. 85–94

Abstract

There is an urgent need for better treatment of lung diseases that are a major cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. This urgency is illustrated by the current COVID-19 health crisis. Moderate-to-extensive lung injury characterizes several lung diseases, and not only therapies that reduce such lung injury are needed but also those that regenerate lung tissue and repair existing lung injury. At present, such therapies are not available, but as a result of a rapid increase in our understanding of lung development and repair, lung regenerative therapies are on the horizon. Here, we discuss existing targets for treatment, as well as novel strategies for development of pharmacological and cell therapy-based regenerative treatment for a variety of lung diseases and clinical studies. We discuss how both patient-relevant in vitro disease models using innovative culture techniques and other advanced new technologies aid in the development of pulmonary regenerative medicine.

Authors 4

1. Padmini P. S. J. Khedoe Aachen Dept of Pulmonology, Leiden University Medical Center

   Leiden University Medical Center

   Affiliation as printed

   Department of Pulmonology, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, the Netherlands

2. Xinhui Wu

   University Medical Center Groningen · University of Groningen

   Affiliation as printed

   Department of Molecular Pharmacology, Faculty of Science and Engineering, University of Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands; Groningen Research Institute for Asthma and COPD, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands

   Department of Molecular Pharmacology, Faculty of Science and Engineering, University of Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands

   Groningen Research Institute for Asthma and COPD, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands

3. Reinoud Gosens

   University Medical Center Groningen · University of Groningen

   Affiliation as printed

   Department of Molecular Pharmacology, Faculty of Science and Engineering, University of Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands; Groningen Research Institute for Asthma and COPD, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands

   Department of Molecular Pharmacology, Faculty of Science and Engineering, University of Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands

   Groningen Research Institute for Asthma and COPD, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands

4. Pieter Sicco Hiemstra corresponding Aachen Dept of Pulmonology, Leiden University Medical Center

   Leiden University Medical Center

   Affiliation as printed

   Department of Pulmonology, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, the Netherlands. Electronic address: p.s.hiemstra@lumc.nl

   Department of Pulmonology, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, the Netherlands