Grant: CIHR New Investigator

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is currently the fourth leading cause of death in Canada and is the only disease where mortality rates continue to climb. This is due to Canada's aging population being at greater risk of developing COPD, as the "Baby boomer" generation grew up when smoking rates were at their peak and smoking is the number one risk factor for COPD. COPD patients have difficulty breathing as their airways - the tubes that carry air in and out of the lung - become partially blocked and damaged. Importantly, there are no cures for COPD, which makes the disease so deadly. The structural cells that line the airway tubes respond to smoke exposure by promoting inflammation and thickening of the airways, termed fibrosis. Our research is focused on understanding how these cells respond to smoke and promote fibrosis in the 20-30 percent of individuals who smoke. The goal of our study is to identify the disease drivers that cause airway fibrosis in COPD patients and to identify new therapies to prevent the disease. Our work leverages a unique set of donated human lungs which will be analyzed with new computed tomography (CT) scanning methods to understand how the physical damage and airway fibrosis occurs over time within COPD lungs. We will then use lung cells isolated from smokers with and without COPD to test if the disease-drivers we identify can be modulated with new or existing therapies. This research will allow better understanding of smoke-related airway disease, and should lead to improved measures to protect Canadians exposed directly or indirectly to smoke exposure.