Microengineered 3D pulmonary interstitial mimetics highlight a critical role for matrix degradation in myofibroblast differentiation.

Fibrosis, characterized by aberrant tissue scarring from activated myofibroblasts, is often untreatable. Although the extracellular matrix becomes increasingly stiff and fibrous during disease progression, how these physical cues affect myofibroblast differentiation in 3D is poorly understood. Here, we describe a multicomponent hydrogel that recapitulates the 3D fibrous structure of interstitial tissue regions where idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) initiates.

Infectious Sporozoites of Effectively Activate Liver CD8α Dendritic Cells.

Immunization with radiation-attenuated sporozoites (RAS) shown to confer complete sterile protection against liver-stage (LS) infection that lasts about 6 to 9 months in mice. We have found that the intermittent infectious sporozoite challenge to immune mice following RAS vaccination extends the longevity of sterile protection by maintaining CD8 T cell memory responses to LS infection. It is reported that CD8α dendritic cells (DCs) are involved in the induction of LS-specific CD8 T cells following RAS or genetically attenuated parasite (GAP) vaccination.