ZEB2 and renal fibrosis: Therefore, it is plausible that Zeb2 may ultimately regulate upstream of SMAD which would explain why when inhibited in Zeb2 cKO mice there is differentiation of Foxd1-positive pericytes into myofibroblasts, ultimately contributing to the progression of renal fibrosis (Fetting et al., 2014; Kumar et al., 2023).