Dynamic reporters for probing real-time activation of human fibroblasts from single cells to populations.

Activation of fibroblasts is pivotal for wound healing; however, persistent activation leads to maladaptive processes and is a hallmark of fibrosis, where disease mechanisms are only partially understood. Human model systems complement animal models for both hypothesis testing and drug evaluation to improve the identification of therapeutics relevant to human disease. Despite advances, a challenge remains in understanding the dynamics of human fibroblast responses to complex microenvironment stimuli, motivating the need for more advanced tools to investigate fibrotic mechanisms.