Scleraxis: A New Regulator of Extracellular Matrix Formation

Abstract

Scleraxis is a transcription factor that appears to play a key role in both the development of extracellular matrix-rich tissues such as tendons, and in the synthesis of matrix itself by regulating matrix gene expression. Our understanding of how scleraxis works, how its activity and expression are regulated, and the specific role it plays in disease is largely incomplete. However, enough data have accumulated to date to identify scleraxis as a critical factor in tendon formation, and ongoing studies in our laboratory have implicated scleraxis as a previously unappreciated driver of cardiac fibrosis due to its role in regulating type I collagen formation. Scleraxis may in fact behave as a master regulator of fibrillar collagen formation in multiple tissues, and the development of therapies aimed at reducing scleraxis function may provide a novel means to control tissue fibrosis in multiple pathologies. Keywords