Grant: Operating Grant

Smoking is a major cause for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). While smoking induces changes to gene expression pattern in the lungs, some of the affected genes return to normal levels of expression upon smoking cessation and some do not. Increasing evidence suggests that smoking introduces reversible DNA modifications (called methylation), which impact the regulation of genes. Aberrant DNA methylation is implicated in a vast spectrum of diseases, however little is known about how the change in DNA methylation relates to the clinical features of COPD. The overall goal of our study is to determine the biological pathways affected by DNA methylation changes associated with COPD. As therapies that prevent or treat COPD are limited, a better understanding of the molecular alterations that drive this disease will be the foundation for effective treatments that improve survival rates.