Disease Category | Injured, Depleted, or Deranged Cellular Compartment* | Therapeutic Goals |
---|---|---|
Congenital lung hypoplasia Chronic lung disease of prematurity Pulmonary emphysema | Alveolar epithelium, Interstitial fibroblast, Capillary endothelium, | Generate alveolar septa Restore complex three dimensional structure |
Neonatal RDS Adult RDS | Alveolar epithelium, Capillary endothelium | Enhance surfactant production Reinforce endothelial and epithelial barriers |
Pulmonary fibrosis | Alveolar epithelium, Interstitial fibroblast | Prevent alveolar epithelial loss Inhibit fibroblast proliferation |
Asthma | Airway epithelium, Myofibroblasts, Airway smooth muscle | Create an anti-inflammatory environment Inhibit airway wall remodeling Inhibit smooth muscle hypertrophy and hyperplasia |
Cystic fibrosis | Airway epithelium | Deliver functional CFTR |
Bronchiolitis obliterans | Airway epithelium | Reinforce the epithelium against toxic, viral or immunologic injury |
Lung cancer | Epithelium | Detection, monitoring or treatment based on molecular regulation of stem cell proliferation and differentiation |