Published ahead of print on March 15, 2007, doi:10.1164/rccm.200612-1797OC
© 2007 American Thoracic Society doi: 10.1164/rccm.200612-1797OC
Genetic Determinants of Emphysema Distribution in the National Emphysema Treatment Trial1 Channing Laboratory and 2 Pulmonary and Critical Care Division, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts; 3 University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa; 4 Veterans Affairs Medical Center and the Pulmonary Center, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts; 5 University of Washington, Seattle, Washington; 6 Temple University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; 7 National Jewish Medical and Research Center, Denver, Colorado; 8 University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan; 9 Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota; and 10 University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Correspondence and requests for reprints should be sent to Dawn L. DeMeo, M.D., M.P.H., Brigham and Women's Hospital, Channing Laboratory, 181 Longwood Avenue, Boston, MA 02115. E-mail: dawn.demeo{at}channing.harvard.edu Rationale: Computed tomography (CT) scanning of the lung may reduce phenotypic heterogeneity in defining subjects with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and allow identification of genetic determinants of emphysema severity and distribution.
Objectives: We sought to identify genes associated with CT scan distribution of emphysema in individuals without Methods: We evaluated baseline CT densitometry phenotypes in 282 individuals with emphysema enrolled in the Genetics Ancillary Study of the National Emphysema Treatment Trial, and used regression models to identify genetic variants associated with emphysema distribution. Measurements and Main Results: Emphysema distribution was assessed by two methods—assessment by radiologists and by computerized density mask quantitation, using a threshold of –950 Hounsfield units. A total of 77 polymorphisms in 20 candidate genes were analyzed for association with distribution of emphysema. GSTP1, EPHX1, and MMP1 polymorphisms were associated with the densitometric, apical-predominant distribution of emphysema (p value range = 0.001–0.050). When an apical-predominant phenotype was defined by the radiologist scoring method, GSTP1 and EPHX1 single-nucleotide polymorphisms were found to be significantly associated. In a case–control analysis of COPD susceptibility limited to cases with densitometric upper-lobe–predominant cases, the EPHX1 His139Arg single-nucleotide polymorphism was associated with COPD (p = 0.005). Conclusions: Apical and basal emphysematous destruction appears to be influenced by different genes. Polymorphisms in the xenobiotic enzymes, GSTP1 and EPHX1, are associated with apical-predominant emphysema. Altered detoxification of cigarette smoke metabolites may contribute to emphysema distribution, and these findings may lead to further insight into genetic determinants of emphysema.
Key Words: COPD • genetics • association analysis • computed tomography • emphysema
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