The cause of abnormal alveolar regeneration in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis is unknown. Here, the authors generated a temporo-spatial cellular map of the regenerating niche and, using unbiased mathematical methods, identified a spatial interaction between a subset of macrophages and aberrant alveolar epithelial cells across all stages of the disease.
- Praveen Weeratunga
- Bethany Hunter
- Ling-Pei Ho