Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is a progressive interstitial lung disease characterized by a continual loss of pulmonary function. Its 5-year survival rate is approximately 20%. Despite the approval of two drugs, pirfenidone and nintedanib, to slow the progression of the disease in certain IPF patients, there is still no effective therapy. No natural models can fully recapitulate all features of human IPF.  

The most widely used experimental model involves intratracheal instillation of bleomycin, validated through collagen expression levels and CT image analysis. However, the bleomycin-induced mouse model presents challenges due to the uneven severity of fibrosis caused by endotracheal administration, whether surgical or nonsurgical. This inconsistency leads to a "blind men touching an elephant" phenomenon during the collection of lung tissue samples. The limitations of current animal models contribute to the high failure rate of clinical trials for IPF.

The goal of this collection is to establish the use of advanced animal models that reproduce key known features of the disease, such as lung transplantation-induced models, humanized animal models, CTD-ILD-related fibrosis models, and unilateral fibrosis models. These improved models will provide more accurate and easily assessable platforms for evaluating drugs and treatment strategies for pulmonary fibrosis.