Growth factors, such as TGF-β, insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1), binding proteins, tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF), interleukins (ILs), endothelin-1, connective tissue growth factor (CTGF), vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), and fibroblast growth factor (FGF) have been shown to be involved in the pathology of IPF at a molecular level. This evidence concerns the gene TNF and idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis.