ReviewThe Journal of clinical investigation2014
Fibrosis: ultimate and proximate causes.
Review in The Journal of clinical investigation, 2014. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 157 papers.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
157 citing papers in PubMed, 238 citations in OpenAlex.
- Cellular Senescence in Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis: Molecular Mechanisms, Pathogenic Networks, and Emerging Therapeutic Targets.Diseases (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Review
- Extracellular matrix remodelling in neurological diseases.Nature reviews. Neurology · 2026Review
- Supervised Learning for Collagen Segmentation in Bright-Field Histology: A Comparative Evaluation of U-Net and MLP.Annals of biomedical engineering · 2026Article
- Therapeutic Potential of Cysteine and Its Derivatives in Dermatology.Molecules (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Review
- Mechanisms of fibrotic tissue remodelling: insights from systemic sclerosis.Nature reviews. Rheumatology · 2026Review
- Single-cell and spatial transcriptomic profiling of cardiac fibroblasts following myocardial infarction.Scientific data · 2026Article
- Fibroblasts as Immunological Sentinels in Cutaneous Inflammation: A Review.Journal of clinical medicine · 2026Review
- Lipid droplets in felid kidneys: prevalence and composition by lipidomics.Frontiers in veterinary science · 2026Article
- Beyond Organ-Specific Therapies: A Unified Approach to Multi-Organ Fibrosis.Drug design, development and therapy · 2026Review
- The intersection of liver cirrhosis and pulmonary fibrosis.Journal of translational medicine · 2025Review
- Emerging concepts and novel mechanisms in organ fibrosis.NPJ Regenerative medicine · 2025Article
- Dietary Nitrate Prevents Cardiac Dysfunction in HFrEF by Improving Hemodynamics, Ameliorating Remodeling, and Resolving Inflammation.Acta physiologica (Oxford, England) · 2025Article
- Perturbation of the circadian clock in chronic diseases involving organ fibrosis.The Journal of clinical investigation · 2025Review
- Fibrotic Disease of the Skin and Lung: Shared Pathways, Environmental Drivers, and Therapeutic Opportunities in a Changing Climate.International journal of molecular sciences · 2025Review
- Reimagining Fibrosis Research, Outcomes, and Therapeutics Through the Lens of Resolution.Seminars in respiratory and critical care medicine · 2025Review
- Distinct cAMP Regulation in Scleroderma Lung and Skin Myofibroblasts Governs Their Dedifferentiation via p38α Inhibition.FASEB journal : official publication of the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology · 2025Article
- Allicin induced AMPK signaling attenuated Smad3 pathway mediated lung fibrosis.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Reactivation of CTLA4-expressing T cells accelerates resolution of lung fibrosis in a humanized mouse model.The Journal of clinical investigation · 2025Article
- Manganese-based type I collagen-targeting MRI probe for in vivo imaging of liver fibrosis.Npj imaging · 2025Article
- Systemic autoimmune rheumatic diseases-associated interstitial lung disease: a pulmonologist's perspective.Breathe (Sheffield, England) · 2025Review
97 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
4 authors.
Funding
Abstract
Fibrotic disorders account for an increasing burden of disease-associated morbidity and mortality worldwide. Although numerous risk factors have been recognized, the etiologies of many of these clinical syndromes have not been identified, and they are often termed idiopathic or cryptogenic. Here, we provide an evolutionary perspective on fibrosis aimed at elucidating its etiopathogenesis. By asking the ultimate question of "why" this process evolved in multicellular organisms, we hope to uncover proximate explanations for "how" it causes disease in humans. We posit that physiological fibrosis-like reactions evolved as an essential process in host defense against pathogens and in normal wound healing. Based on this premise, we reason that pathological fibrosis is related to one or more of the following: unidentified infectious or noninfectious antigens, autoimmunity, impaired regenerative responses, and the antagonistically pleiotropic action of genes involved in wound healing or development. The importance of genetic susceptibility, epigenetics, aging, and the modern-day environment are highlighted. Consideration of both ultimate and proximate causation goes beyond philosophical cogitations, as it will better inform pathobiological mechanisms of disease and aid in the prevention and treatment of fibrotic diseases.
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What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.