Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41624831›Full record

ReviewFrontiers in immunology2025

Iron homeostasis and macrophage polarization in pulmonary fibrosis: mechanisms and therapeutic perspectives.

Minlan Luo, Ali Al-Waqeerah, Lili Gao

Abstract readReview
In one paragraph

Review in Frontiers in immunology, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 6 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
6citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

6 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Review
  2. Iron and the lung: emerging roles of iron metabolism in pulmonary disease pathogenesis and therapy.European respiratory review : an official journal of the European Respiratory Society · 2026
    Review
  3. Article
  4. Review
  5. Review
  6. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

3 authors.

Minlan LuoDepartment of Respiratory Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital of Dalian Medical University, Dalian, China.
Ali Al-WaqeerahDepartment of Respiratory Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital of Dalian Medical University, Dalian, China.
Lili GaoDepartment of Respiratory Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital of Dalian Medical University, Dalian, China.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is a chronic progressive and fatal interstitial lung disease with limited therapeutic options. Recent evidence highlights dysregulated iron metabolism in macrophages as a critical yet underrecognized driver of disease progression. Excess iron accumulation functions as a signaling cue that promotes macrophage polarization toward the pro-fibrotic M2 phenotype through pathways such as HIF-1α/IL-10/STAT6, contributing to aberrant tissue repair, myofibroblast activation, and excessive extracellular matrix (ECM) deposition. This review synthesizes current findings on the mechanistic interplay between iron homeostasis and macrophage phenotypic switching in IPF and evaluates emerging therapeutic strategies that target iron availability, including iron chelators, ferroportin modulators, and targeted nanocarrier delivery systems. While these approaches show promise, challenges remain regarding specificity, off-target effects, and systemic toxicity. By integrating mechanistic insights with translational advances, this review underscores the therapeutic potential of targeting the macrophage-iron axis and outlines how precision medicine-based interventions may offer novel avenues for effective IPF treatment.

Indexed as

HomeostasisIdiopathic Pulmonary FibrosisIronMacrophage ActivationMacrophagesAnimalsHumansIron Chelating AgentsSignal TransductionIronIron Chelating Agentsidiopathic pulmonary fibrosisinflammationiron metabolismiron overloadmacrophage polarization

Identifiers

PMID41624831
PMCPMC12851990

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.