Grant: Project Grant

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is a condition in which cough, constant secretions and shortness of breath steadily decrease patients' quality of life. But the lung is not the only organ affected. In fact, in COPD patients, heart disease is often the cause of hospitalization and of death. COPD and heart disease are strongly related. Studies suggest that the risk for suffering from a heart problem is greatly increased when COPD patients experience a worsening of their respiratory symptoms (known as acute exacerbation). Unfortunately, the risk for future heart disease is not routinely assessed in COPD patients and we do not have the tools to detect COPD individuals at high risk. Sustained inflammation has been identified as a big culprit linking heart disease and acute exacerbations in COPD patients. A family of mediators of inflammation, the alarmins, is currently being studied for its roles in both, COPD and heart disease. The particular feature of these mediators is that they act only after being released from damaged tissue. This unique research project will assess cardiovascular risk and measure the levels of several inflammatory mediators (including the alarmins) in a large population of COPD and non-COPD individuals. These mediators could represent signs of "alarm" that, if detected at early stages, it is believed that they may be used to predict future risks in COPD patients. We will then study the specific mechanisms that lead to the production of these molecules in the lung. Our results will reveal new tools to identify COPD subjects at risk for future adverse events, namely heart disease and exacerbations. Furthermore, these tools will help us to implement strategies to prevent these events in COPD patients. Finally, our results will lead to the identification of potential targets to decrease inflammation in COPD.