Washington: Patients who have damaged organs could be helped by new treatments after researchers found how tissues scar, a new study has claimed.
According to researchers, the finding could pave the way for new drugs and eventually reduce the number of patients on organ transplant waiting lists.
Fibrotic diseases occur in many tissues within the body - including the liver, lung or kidneys - and have a range of causes including viruses or toxins.
Experts say that the main source of scar tissue is found in specialised cells called Myofibroblasts.
The study discovered that a molecule on these cells is a key regulator of fibrotic disease.
Scientists said that the molecule - called alpha v integrin - is a critical switch involved in turning on the myofibroblast cells to make scar tissue.
The team studied specially bred mice with fibrosis to see if removing the alpha v integrin molecule on myofibroblasts will reduce the amount of scar tissue in their organs.
Researchers found that when they removed alpha v integrin from these cells, the mice were protected from fibrosis of the liver, lung and kidneys.
They also found that when they treated the mice with a new experimental drug designed to block alpha v integrins, the animals were protected from liver and lung fibrosis.
