Fibrosis Pathogenesis and Resolution: From Mechanisms to Therapies

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ABSTRACT Support is requested for a Keystone Symposia conference entitled Fibrosis Pathogenesis and Resolution: From Mechanisms to Therapies, organized by Drs. David Lagares, Boris Hinz and Carine Boustany. The conference will be held in Banff, Alberta, Canada from March 19 - 23, 2023. Human fibrotic diseases are characterized by progressive tissue scarring in response to overwhelming or chronic injury, ultimately leading to organ failure and death. Fibrotic diseases cause healthcare costs reaching $10 billion per year. These costs are expected to further increase with our aging populations, our increasing capacity to diagnose fibrotic disorders and the emergence of novel infectious agents such as SARS-CoV-2, which can promote the development of fibrosis. Therefore, this conference was designed to identify common and distinct mechanisms driving fibrosis in response to different insults (e.g., viral infection, trauma, oncogenic injury). This conference will also address the following emerging themes in the field: 1) the mechanisms which amplify and perpetuate tissue fibrosis, such as aging, epigenetics, and mechanobiology, 2) the relevance of fibroblast heterogeneity in tissue repair and fibrosis, and 3) understanding the mechanisms promoting fibrosis resolution and regeneration to devise novel strategies to truly regenerate fibrotic organs. This forum will also focus on major clinical challenges including the lack of robust fibrosis biomarkers, safety endpoints, and clinical trial endpoints. Advances in these areas will break down barriers in translating anti-fibrotic therapies from bench to bedside. This Keystone Symposia conference will accelerate fibrosis research and anti-fibrotic drug discovery by fostering interdisciplinary interactions among a diverse group of physicians and scientists from both academic institutions and the pharmaceutical and biotech industry. Finally, this conference will be held jointly with Metabolic and Molecular Mechanisms of NAFLD/NASH. The joint conference will highlight current evidence linking key biological processes involved in NASH and liver fibrosis. Participants from both conferences will have the opportunity to network through shared sessions, mealtimes, and evening poster sessions.