Human amnion epithelial cell transplantation abrogates lung fibrosis and augments repair.

Rationale: Chronic lung disease characterized by loss of lung tissue, inflammation, and fibrosis represents a major global health burden. Cellular therapies that could restore pneumocytes and reduce inflammation and fibrosis would be a major advance in management.

Objectives: To determine whether human amnion epithelial cells (hAECs), isolated from term placenta and having stem cell-like and antiinflammatory properties, could adopt an alveolar epithelial phenotype and repair a murine model of bleomycin-induced lung injury.