What is it about?
Cigarette smoke inhalation is the primary risk factor linked to the development of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), a major cause of death worldwide. We identify that smoking turns on a gene, linked to cancer, that contributes to symptoms of COPD
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Why is it important?
Approximately every 4 seconds a person dies from COPD. However, we currently know little about important biological changes that contribute to the disease. Here, we have identified that cigarette smoke inhalation can activate an oncogene, a cancer related gene. Once activated, this gene (CIP2A) can modify protective immune responses that are linked to keeping the lungs healthy. Thus, targeting CIP2A with a drug could limit the progression of the disease and improve quality of life for COPD patients.
Perspectives
This article comes from the hard work of residents, biological scientists, pulmonologists and a chemist. Combining the knowledge of specialists from several fields aided in the discovery of a potential new strategy to treat COPD patients and also the training of two new enthusiastic scientist physicians.
Patrick Geraghty
State University of New York
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Chronic Cigarette Smoke Exposure Subdues PP2A Activity by Enhancing Expression of the Oncogene CIP2A, American Journal of Respiratory Cell and Molecular Biology, December 2018, American Thoracic Society,
DOI: 10.1165/rcmb.2018-0173oc.
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