Overview of lung development

摘要

The etiology of diseases, for the most part, is multi-factorial and the result of errant expression or functioning of normal processes. When an infant is born prematurely, the lung has not completed its normal in utero development. The transition from in utero to ex utero life forces the infant to adapt to new environmental conditions and stimuli, and depending on how premature an infant is, that infant may not be able to adequately compensate for the changes. As a result extremely premature infants are vulnerable to lung injury and abnormal lung remodeling, which manifests itself through chronic lung dysfunction. In continuing to understanding the molecular mechanisms that control lung development and growth, researchers and clinicians can develop or re-evaluate treatment strategies, for premature infant so to maximize lung maturation, while minimizing lung injury.