Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42716949›Full record

ArticleSignal transduction and targeted therapy2026

Alveolar epithelial depletion of βPAK-interacting exchange factor drives spontaneous pulmonary fibrosis by impairing stemness.

Han-Byeol Kim, Woogil Song, Sun-Ok Kim, Jin-Hee Park, Junyeol Han, Ok-Jun Lee, Nak-Kyun Soung, Bumhee Yang, Jinwook Choi, Martin Alexander Schwartz and 3 more

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Signal transduction and targeted therapy, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
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1 · What the graph read from it

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.

2 · The registry

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Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

13 authors.

Han-Byeol Kim *Department of Biochemistry and Medical Research Center, Chungbuk National University College of Medicine, Cheongju, Republic of Korea.
Woogil Song *Graduate School of Medical Science and Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), Daejeon, Republic of Korea.ORCID 0009-0004-6217-5022
Sun-Ok Kim *Department of Biochemistry and Medical Research Center, Chungbuk National University College of Medicine, Cheongju, Republic of Korea.
Jin-Hee ParkDepartment of Biochemistry and Medical Research Center, Chungbuk National University College of Medicine, Cheongju, Republic of Korea.
Junyeol HanChemical Biology Research Center, Korea Research Institute of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Cheongju, Republic of Korea.
Ok-Jun LeeDepartment of Pathology, and Medical Research Center, Chungbuk National University College of Medicine, Cheongju, Republic of Korea.
Nak-Kyun SoungChemical Biology Research Center, Korea Research Institute of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Cheongju, Republic of Korea.
Bumhee YangDivision of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Chungbuk National University Hospital, Chungbuk National University College of Medicine, Cheongju, Republic of Korea.
Jinwook ChoiSchool of Life Sciences, Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology (GIST), Gwangju, Republic of Korea.
Martin Alexander SchwartzYale Cardiovascular Research Center, Section of Cardiovascular Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, and Department of Cell Biology, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, USA.
Jeong Seok LeeGraduate School of Medical Science and Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), Daejeon, Republic of Korea. chemami@kaist.ac.kr.ORCID 0000-0001-8261-7044
Eun-Young ShinDepartment of Biochemistry and Medical Research Center, Chungbuk National University College of Medicine, Cheongju, Republic of Korea. eyshin@chungbuk.ac.kr.
Eung-Gook KimDepartment of Biochemistry and Medical Research Center, Chungbuk National University College of Medicine, Cheongju, Republic of Korea. egkim@chungbuk.ac.kr.ORCID 0000-0001-8232-5666

Funding

National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) 2020R1A5A2017476
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Aberrant repair/regeneration of alveolar epithelial stem cells is a key driver of pulmonary fibrosis (PF). While βPAK-interacting exchange factor (βPIX) is connected to stem cell signaling, its role in pulmonary fibrosis (PF) remains unknown. Here, we generated conditional βPIX knockout mice to investigate its contribution to PF pathogenesis. Selectively depleting βPIX in alveolar type 2 (AT2) cells led to progressive PF in mice, recapitulating the key features observed in human idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), where AT2 cells exhibit significantly reduced βPIX levels. Single-nucleus RNA sequencing of the lungs of βPIX-deficient mice revealed the emergence of progenitor cells in a transitional stem cell state with senescent attributes, along with active, collagen-producing myofibroblasts. Mechanistically, the loss of βPIX impaired AT2 cell stemness by downregulating Wnt/β-catenin signaling. AT2 cells from IPF patients also presented reduced levels of β-catenin and Axin2, confirming the downregulation of Wnt/β-catenin signaling. Treatment with a glycogen synthase kinase-3β inhibitor reactivated Wnt/β-catenin signaling and attenuated fibrosis in βPIX-deficient mice. Our results establish a direct causal link between βPIX deficiency and PF, highlighting βPIX and its downstream pathway as promising therapeutic targets for this devastating disease.

Indexed as

Alveolar Epithelial CellsIdiopathic Pulmonary FibrosisRho Guanine Nucleotide Exchange FactorsStem CellsAnimalsAxin Proteinbeta CateninGlycogen Synthase Kinase 3 betaHumansMiceMice, KnockoutWnt Signaling PathwayARHGEF7 protein, humanAxin2 protein, mouseAxin Proteinbeta CateninGlycogen Synthase Kinase 3 betaRho Guanine Nucleotide Exchange Factors

Identifiers

PMID42716949
PMCPMC13558768

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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.