PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Domokos Bartis
AU  - Nikica Mise
AU  - Rahul Y Mahida
AU  - Oliver Eickelberg
AU  - David R Thickett
TI  - Epithelial–mesenchymal transition in lung development and disease: does it exist and is it important?
AID  - 10.1136/thoraxjnl-2013-204608
DP  - 2014 Aug 01
TA  - Thorax
PG  - 760--765
VI  - 69
IP  - 8
4099  - http://thorax.bmj.com/content/69/8/760.short
4100  - http://thorax.bmj.com/content/69/8/760.full
SO  - Thorax2014 Aug 01; 69
AB  - Epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT) is a process when epithelial cells gradually transform into mesenchymal-like cells losing their epithelial functionality and characteristics. EMT is thought to be involved in the pathogenesis of numerous lung diseases ranging from developmental disorders, fibrotic tissue remodelling to lung cancer. The most important question—namely what is the importance and contribution of EMT in the pathogenesis of several chronic lung conditions (asthma, COPD, bronchiolitis obliterans syndrome and lung fibrosis)—is currently intensely debated. This review gives a brief insight into the mechanism and assessment methods of EMT in various pulmonary diseases and summarises the recent literature highlighting the controversial experimental data and conclusions.