Review Article
Chen Y. · Zhou J. · Xu S. · Nie J.Background: Organ fibrosis remains an important cause of high incidence rate and mortality worldwide. The prominent role of interleukin-6 (IL-6) family members represented by IL-6 in inflammation has been extensively studied, and drugs targeting IL-6 have been used clinically. Because of the close relationship between inflammation and fibrosis, researches on the role of IL-6 family members in organ fibrosis are also gradually emerging. Summary: In this review, we systematically reviewed the role of IL-6 family members in fibrosis and their possible mechanisms. We listed the role of IL-6 family members in organ fibrosis, and drew two diagrams to illustrate the downstream signal transductions of IL-6 family members. We also summarized the effect of some IL-6 family members' antagonists in a table. Key Messages: Fibrosis contributes to organ structure damage, organ dysfunction and eventually organ failure. Although IL-6 family cytokines have similar downstream signal pathways, different members play various roles in an organ-specific manner which might partly due to their different target cell populations. The pathogenic role of individual member in various diseases needs to be deciphered carefully.
The Author(s). Published by S. Karger AG, Basel
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