Patients diagnosed with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease or COPD eventually lose their ability to repair lung damage on their own, and now, researchers may have an idea as to what could be driving the event.

In a study published in the Journal of Experimental Medicine, Melanie Königshoff and colleagues identified the molecule Wnt5a to be the source of the problem.

"In our current work, we have been able to show that COPD results in a change in the messengers that lung cells use to communicate with one another," said Königshoff, the study's leader.

COPD Characteristics

A chronic cough is the usual first indication of COPD. When the disease progresses, it leads to narrowed airways and often causes pulmonary emphysema to develop. Once this occurs, it is indicative of irreversible damage and expansion to the air sacks, or alveoli. At this point, the body loses its ability to repair destroyed structures. Why exactly this happens is what the researchers wanted to find out.

The idea that guided Königshoff and colleagues was that the relationship between Wnt messengers was in disarray in the presence of COPD. They looked for potential interference signals and saw that COPD tissue from patients and preclinical models had elevated levels and modified forms of non-canonical Wnt5a, which disrupts the Wnt-beta-catenin signaling pathway responsible for repairing lung damage.

Additionally, the researchers observed that the presence of stimuli that usually causes a COPD reaction, like cigarette smoke, increased Wnt5a production and lung regeneration impairment.

According to Hoeke Baarsma, the study's first author, the offending Wnt5a originated from connective tissue cells called fibroblasts.

The study's results hold a lot of potential as it can be used to guide a completely new mechanism for treating COPD.

COPD Statistics

In the United States, COPD is the third leading cause of death. There are more than 11 million people diagnosed with the disease but millions more are believed to have COPD without even realizing it.

Deaths arising from COPD are also higher in women compared to men. According to the American Lung Association, a few possible reasons can explain this, including women being naturally more vulnerable to lung damage because of cigarette smoke and other pollutants, misdiagnosis, and the increase in the number of women smoking starting in the late 1960s.

According to the COPD Foundation, Kentucky has the highest COPD presence in all of the U.S. states, with 9.3 percent of its population affected by the disease.

But while there is no cure for COPD, it can be treated and managed with a combination of drugs, rehabilitation and therapy, and social support when discovered early enough.