Fibroblast activation protein: a serine protease expressed at the remodeling interface in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis

PS Acharya, A Zukas, V Chandan, ALA Katzenstein… - Human pathology, 2006 - Elsevier
Fibroblast activation protein (FAPα) is a member of the cell surface dipeptidyl peptidase
(DPP) family of serine proteases. In its dimer form, FAPα exhibits gelatinase, collagenase,
and DPP activity in vitro. Reactive fibroblasts in healing wounds and stromal fibroblasts
associated with epithelial tumors express FAPα. Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is a
disease of the lung characterized by progressive fibrosis with no clear etiology or molecular
marker for disease activity. Recently, it has been shown that fibroblast FAPα expression is …