Leukemia inhibitory factor promotes immune dysfunction in human cholangiopathies and its inhibition attenuates cholestasis in Abcb4-/- mice

Primary Sclerosing Cholangitis (PSC) and Primary Biliary Cholangitis (PBC) are immune-mediated chronic cholestatic liver diseases characterized by progressive biliary inflammation and fibrosis, for which treatment options remain limited, underscoring the need for novel therapeutic targets.Leukaemia Inhibitory Factor (LIF), belongs to the IL-6 family of cytokines that dysregulated communication between epithelial cells and extracellular matrices.

Here, we have investigated whether LIF/LIFR axis is dysregulated in PSC and PBC and assessed the therapeutic potential of LIFR antagonism in preclinical model of PSC.