ArticleScientific reports2025
M2-like macrophages derived from THP-1 cells promote myofibroblast differentiation of synovial fibroblasts in association with the TGF-β1/SMAD2/3 signaling pathway.
Article in Scientific reports, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 15 papers.
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Who cites it
15 citing papers in PubMed.
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- Cardiac Mitochondrial Dysfunction Following Bleomycin-Induced Acute Lung Injury in Rats.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2026Article
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- Innovative Insights into Interleukin-Mediated Macrophage Polarization: Metabolic Reprogramming and Inflammatory Pathway Crosstalk in Chronic Kidney Disease and Therapeutic Implications-A Narrative Review.International journal of general medicine · 2026Review
- Gut microbiota-immune crosstalk in osteoarthritis: pathogenic mechanisms and emerging therapeutic opportunities.Frontiers in microbiology · 2026Review
- The role of macrophage polarization in organ transplantation: research progress on impact on graft injury, repair, and fibrosis.Frontiers in immunology · 2026Review
- The dual role of metabolic reprogramming in macrophage polarization in rheumatoid arthritis and coronary heart disease and the intervention strategy of traditional Chinese medicine.Frontiers in cardiovascular medicine · 2026Review
- Dual Graphene Oxide-Based Multigene Delivery for Cancer Elimination via Stromal and Immune Reprogramming.International journal of biomaterials · 2026Article
- Neutrophil extracellular traps in pulmonary fibrosis: mechanisms, immunity and therapeutic targets.Frontiers in immunology · 2026Review
- Targeting Tumor-Associated Macrophages to Reshape the Immuno-Mechanical Landscape: Molecular Mechanisms and Therapeutic Strategies.International journal of biological sciences · 2026Review
- Infrapatellar Fat Pad in Knee Osteoarthritis: A Comprehensive Review of Pathophysiology and Targeted Therapeutic Strategies.International journal of molecular sciences · 2025Review
- Decoding cardiac metabolic reprogramming through single-cell multi-omics: from mechanisms to therapeutic applications.Frontiers in cell and developmental biology · 2025Review
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9 authors.
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Abstract
Fibrosis occurs during progression of osteoarthritis (OA), and myofibroblasts are considered a key effector to drive the fibrotic response. Macrophages also play critical roles in OA progression. However, whether macrophage polarization is involved in OA-related fibrosis has not been adequately defined. Here, we investigated the effect of M2-like macrophages compared to M1-like macrophages on the myofibroblast differentiation of human synovial fibroblasts (HSFs). M1- and M2-like macrophages differentiated from the human monocytic THP-1 cells were co-cultured with HSFs for 72 h. Alpha-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA) positive cells and gene expression of pro-fibrotic and anti-fibrotic factors were quantified. The concentration of transforming growth factor-beta1 (TGF-β1) in the culture supernatant was also analyzed, and its effect on the regulation of the TGF-β/SMAD signaling pathway was further investigated. We found that, cocultured with M2-like macrophages increased the number of α-SMA positive cells and expression of pro-fibrotic genes and decreased the expression of anti-fibrotic genes in HSFs. TGF‑β1 was highly secreted by M2‑like macrophages and accelerated the phosphorylation of SMAD2/3 in HSF cells. Our results indicate the pro-fibrotic effects of M2-like macrophages in myofibroblast differentiation of HSFs, in association with the TGF-β1/SMAD2/3 signaling pathway activation. Thus, M2-like macrophages may play a role in OA fibrogenesis and its progression.
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