Given that the currently understood role of CXC chemokines in IPF is as a mechanism of recruitment and vascular remodeling47, and our findings that the primary receptor for CXCL14 is outside of the fibrotic foci, these data suggest that CXCL14 may serve as a signal for the recruitment and activation of CXCR4+/ACTA2+ cells. Here, CXCL14 is linked to idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis.