Sfrp1, short for Secreted frizzled-related protein 1, is a member of the secretory glycoprotein SFRP family. It plays a role in regulating cell growth, development, and transformation, and is involved in pathways such as Wnt/β -catenin signaling. It has significance in various biological processes including cell proliferation, migration, and pyroptosis, and is associated with multiple diseases [2,3]. Genetic models, like KO mouse models, can be valuable for studying its function.

In lung fibrosis, loss-of-function studies showed that SFRP1 modulates TGFβ1-induced fibroblast invasion and RHOA pathway activity. Sfrp1 + transitional fibroblasts, which appear early after lung injury, can inhibit fibroblast invasion during the transition to myofibroblasts. TGFβ1 downregulates SFRP1 in non-invasive transitional cells, inducing their switch to invasive myofibroblasts [1]. In nonpathologic myopia, genetic knockdown of SFRP1 in a guinea pig model prevented myopia progression by abrogating reduced choroidal blood perfusion [4]. In retinal photoreceptor studies, Sfrp1-/-mice had disorganized photoreceptors more prone to light-induced damage, suggesting SFRP1 contributes to photoreceptor fitness [5].

In summary, Sfrp1 is crucial in regulating cell-related processes and is involved in diseases such as lung fibrosis, nonpathologic myopia, and retinal photoreceptor degeneration. Studies using KO mouse models have revealed its role in these disease conditions, providing insights into potential therapeutic targets for these diseases [1,4,5].

References:

1. Mayr, Christoph H, Sengupta, Arunima, Asgharpour, Sara, Burgstaller, Gerald, Schiller, Herbert B. 2024. Sfrp1 inhibits lung fibroblast invasion during transition to injury-induced myofibroblasts. In The European respiratory journal, 63, . doi:10.1183/13993003.01326-2023. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38212077/

2. Jiang, Ping, Wei, Kai, Chang, Cen, Schrodi, Steven J, He, Dongyi. 2022. SFRP1 Negatively Modulates Pyroptosis of Fibroblast-Like Synoviocytes in Rheumatoid Arthritis: A Review. In Frontiers in immunology, 13, 903475. doi:10.3389/fimmu.2022.903475. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35795672/

3. Baharudin, Rashidah, Tieng, Francis Yew Fu, Lee, Learn-Han, Ab Mutalib, Nurul Syakima. 2020. Epigenetics of SFRP1: The Dual Roles in Human Cancers. In Cancers, 12, . doi:10.3390/cancers12020445. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32074995/

4. Geng, Chao, Liu, Siyi, Wang, Jindan, Li, Zhiqing, Zhang, Yan. 2023. Targeting the cochlin/SFRP1/CaMKII axis in the ocular posterior pole prevents the progression of nonpathologic myopia. In Communications biology, 6, 884. doi:10.1038/s42003-023-05267-2. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37644183/

5. Cisneros, Elsa, di Marco, Fabiana, Rueda-Carrasco, Javier, Esteve, Pilar, Bovolenta, Paola. 2020. Sfrp1 deficiency makes retinal photoreceptors prone to degeneration. In Scientific reports, 10, 5115. doi:10.1038/s41598-020-61970-8. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32198470/