RT Journal Article SR Electronic T1 Pirfenidone attenuates myofibroblast differentiation during insufficient mitophagy JF European Respiratory Journal JO Eur Respir J FD European Respiratory Society SP OA482 DO 10.1183/13993003.congress-2016.OA482 VO 48 IS suppl 60 A1 Yusuke Kurita A1 Jun Araya A1 Hiromiti Hara A1 Shunsuke Minagawa A1 Nayuta Saito A1 Nahoko Sato A1 Kazuya Tubouchi A1 Masahiro Yoshida A1 Kenji Kobayashi A1 Takanori Numata A1 Yumi Kaneko A1 Katutoshi Nakayama A1 Kazuyoshi Kuwano YR 2016 UL http://erj.ersjournals.com/content/48/suppl_60/OA482.abstract AB RATIONALE: Pirfenidone (PFD), is an anti-fibrotic agent used to treat idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), but its precise mechanism of action remains to be determined. Accumulation of profibrotic myofibroblasts is a crucial process for fibrotic remodeling in IPF. We have demonstrated that insufficient mitophagy caused by reduced PARK2 expression may be involved in myofibroblast differentiation during IPF pathogenesis through ROS-mediated PDGF receptor (PDGFR) activation. In this study, we investigated the regulatory role of PFD in myofibroblast differentiation during insufficient mitophagy in lung fibroblasts (LF) and also during bleomycin (BLM)-induced lung fibrosis in the PARK2 KO mouse.METHODS: LF were isolated from human lung, and the effect of PFD on myofibroblast differentiation was evaluated by measuring expression of αSMA and type1 collagen. PDGFR activation was evaluated bydetecting phosphorylated forms. MitoSOX Red staining and DCFDA were used to evaluate mitochondrial ROS and intracellular ROS, respectively.Mice were given intratracheal injections of bleomycin (BLM) and intraesophageal administration of PFD.RESULTS: PFD inhibited PARK2 knockdown-induced myofibroblast differentiation by reducing mitochondrial ROS and PDGFR-PI3K-Akt activation in LF. BLM-treated PARK2 KO mice demonstrated augmentation of lung fibrosis development compared to BLM-treated C57BL/6 mice, which was efficiently attenuated by the administraion of PFD.CONCLUSION: PFD efficiently inhibits myofibroblast differentiation and development of BLM-induced lung fibrosis in the setting of insufficient mitophagy, which may at least partly explain the anti-fibrotic mechanisms of PFD for IPF treatment.