Abstract：
Cysts are abnormal fluid-filled sacs found in various human organs, including the liver. Liver cysts can be associated with known causes such as parasite infections and gene mutations, or simply aging. Among these causes, simple liver cysts are often found in elderly people. While they are generally benign, they may occasionally grow but rarely shrink with age, indicating their clear association with aging. However, the mechanism behind the formation of simple liver cysts has not been thoroughly investigated. Recently, we have generated transgenic mice that specifically overexpress fibroblast growth factor (FGF)18 in hepatocytes. These mice exhibit severe liver fibrosis without inflammation and spontaneously develop liver cysts that grow with age. Our findings suggest that simple liver cysts can be induced by fibrosis accompanied by sterile inflammation or injury, whereas fibrosis accompanied by severe inflammation or injury may lead to cirrhosis. We also discuss the detrimental effects of disease- and aging-associated fibrosis in various organs, such as the heart, lungs, and kidneys. Additionally, we provide a brief summary of the two currently approved anti-fibrotic drugs for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, nintedanib and pirfenidone, as well as their possibility of future expansion of application toward other fibrotic diseases.
摘要：
囊肿是在各种人体器官中发现的异常充满液体的囊，包括肝脏.肝囊肿可能与已知的原因有关，如寄生虫感染和基因突变，或者只是老化。在这些原因中，单纯性肝囊肿常见于老年人。虽然它们通常是良性的，它们偶尔会生长，但很少会随着年龄的增长而收缩，表明它们与衰老有明显的联系。然而,单纯性肝囊肿形成的机制尚未得到彻底研究。最近,我们已经产生了在肝细胞中特异性过表达成纤维细胞生长因子（FGF）18的转基因小鼠。这些小鼠表现出严重的肝纤维化而没有炎症，并随年龄增长自发形成肝囊肿。我们的研究结果表明，单纯性肝囊肿可由纤维化引起，伴有无菌性炎症或损伤，而伴有严重炎症或损伤的纤维化可能导致肝硬化。我们还讨论了各种器官中疾病和衰老相关纤维化的有害影响，比如心脏，肺,还有肾脏.此外,我们提供了两种目前批准的特发性肺纤维化抗纤维化药物的简要总结，尼达尼布和吡非尼酮,以及它们未来扩展应用于其他纤维化疾病的可能性。
