HMOX1 and acute respiratory distress syndrome: Several studies have shown that enhancing mitophagy via molecules such as PPAR-gamma coactivator α, Sestrin2, heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1), and RUNX1 can protect against oxidative lung damage and mitigate ALI progression (Wu et al., 2021; Kim M. J. et al., 2016; Liu et al., 2021; Shi et al., 2019; Tang et al., 2023).