New insight into chronic lung disease

Reported by Susan Aldridge, PhD, medical journalist

Research into the mechanism of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease offers a potential new approach to the condition.
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a condition in which lung tissue is gradually destroyed, giving rise to breathlessness and disability. The major risk factor for COPD, which is also known as chronic bronchitis and emphysema, is smoking. And the usual treatment is anti-asthma drugs.

Now researchers at the Royal Adelaide Hospital, Australia, announce research that shows what really goes on in the lungs of those with COPD. They compared patients with COPD, both smokers and ex-smokers, with people who had healthy lungs. There was far more apoptosis, a form of cell death, in those who had COPD. The lungs of those with COPD also had fewer of the scavenger cells which clear dead cells away.

It may be that some people have a natural tendency to apoptosis which makes them more vulnerable to the effects of smoking. This might explain why only some smokers develop COPD. What is more, therapies based on blocking apoptosis, which are already being developed, may turn out to be helpful for those with COPD.

Source
European Respiratory Journal March 2005