Project description:Cystatin A (gene: CSTA), is up-regulated in non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and dysplastic vs normal human bronchial epithelium. In the context that chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), a small airway epithelium (SAE) disorder, is independently associated with NSCLC (especially squamous cell carcinoma, SCC), but only occurs in a subset of smokers, we hypothesized that genetic variation, smoking and COPD modulate CSTA gene expression levels in SAE, with further up-regulation in SCC. Gene expression was assessed by microarray in SAE of 178 individuals [healthy nonsmokers (n=60), healthy smokers (n=82), and COPD smokers (n=36)], with corresponding large airway epithelium (LAE) data in a subset (n=52). Blood DNA was genotyped by SNP microarray. Twelve SNPs upstream of the CSTA gene were all significantly associated with CSTA SAE gene expression (p<0.04 to 5 x 10-4). CSTA gene expression levels in SAE were higher in COPD smokers (28.4 Â± 2.0) than healthy smokers (19.9 Â± 1.4, p<10-3), who in turn had higher levels than nonsmokers (16.1 Â± 1.1, p<0.04). CSTA LAE gene expression was also smoking-responsive (p<10-3). Using comparable publicly available NSCLC expression data, CSTA was up-regulated in SCC vs LAE (p<10-2) and down-regulated in adenocarcinoma vs SAE (p<10-7). All phenotypes were associated with significantly different proportional gene expression of CSTA to cathepsins. The data demonstrate that regulation of CSTA expression in human airway epithelium is influenced by genetic variability, smoking, and COPD, and is further up-regulated in SCC, all of which should be taken into account when considering the role of CSTA in NSCLC pathogenesis. CSTA gene expression was assessed in the small airway epithelium obtained by bronchoscopy from 178 individuals, including healthy nonsmokers (n= 60) and healthy smokers (n= 118) and the large airway epithelium from healthy nonsmokers (n=21) and healthy smokers(n=31). *** Processed data not provided for all gene expression records. *** Blood DNA from the majority of these individuals was genotyped and an association analysis of gene expression with genotypes of all 48 SNPs within 100 kb of CSTA was performed in PLINK, and tested for significance following 103 permutations within ancestral clusters. Supplementary file (linked below) reports genotypes of all 48 SNPs within 100 kb of the CSTA gene for the 112 genotyping Samples.

Project description:Study Smoking and COPD are associated with decreased mucociliary clearance and healthy smokers have shorter cilia in the large airway than nonsmokers. Intraflagellar transport (IFT) is the process by which cilia are produced and maintained. We assessed expression of IFT-related genes in smokers and nonsmokers and evaluated cilia length in the large and small airway of nonsmokers, healthy smokers, and smokers with COPD. Methods Airway epithelium was obtained via bronchoscopic brushing. Affymetrix microarrays were used to evaluate IFT gene expression in 2 independent data sets from large and small airway. Cilia length was assessed by measuring 100 cilia (10 cilia on each of 10 cells) per subject. Results All 40 IFT genes were expressed in the human large and small airway epithelium. In the large airway, 10 IFT genes were down-regulated and 1 up-regulated in smokers. In the small airway, 11 genes were down-regulated and 3 up-regulated in smokers. A set of 8 IFT genes was down-regulated in both data sets. In the large and small airway epithelium, cilia were significantly shorter in healthy smokers than nonsmokers, and significantly shorter in COPD smokers than in both healthy smokers and nonsmokers. Answer to the Question These results support the concept that loss of cilia length contributes to defective mucociliary clearance in COPD, and that smoking-induced changes in expression of IFT genes may be one mechanism of abnormally short cilia in smokers. Strategies to normalize cilia length may be an important avenue for novel COPD therapies. Gene expression was assessed for 40 intraflagellar transport related genes in the LAE of nonsmokers (n=21) and healthy smokers (n=31) and the SAE of an independent group of nonsmokers (n=28) and healthy smokers (n=69). Cilia length was assessed in a total of 228 airway epithelium samples, including 120 LAE samples and 108 SAE samples; a subset of the 228 samples is represented among the 149 samples in this Series.

Project description:Waterpipe (also called hookah, shisha, or narghile) smoking is a common form of tobacco use in the Middle East. Its use is becoming more prevalent in Western societies, especially among young adults as an alternative form of tobacco use to traditional cigarettes. While the risk to cigarette smoking is well documented, the risk to waterpipe smoking is not well defined with limited information on its health impact at the epidemiologic, clinical and biologic levels with respect to lung disease. Based on the knowledge that airway epithelial cell DNA methylation is modified in response to cigarette smoke and in cigarette smoking-related lung diseases, we assessed the impact of light-use water-pipe smoking on DNA methylation of the small airway epithelium (SAE) and whether changes in methylation were linked to the transcriptional output of the cells. Small airway epithelium was obtained from 7 nonsmokers and 7 light-use (2.6 ± 1.7 sessions/wk) waterpipe-only smokers. Genome-wide comparison of SAE DNA methylation of waterpipe smokers to nonsmokers identified 727 probesets differentially methylated (fold-change >1.5, p<0.05) representing 673 unique genes. Dominant pathways associated with these epigenetic changes include those linked to G-protein coupled receptor signaling, aryl hydrocarbon receptor signaling and xenobiotic metabolism signaling, all of which have been associated with cigarette smoking and lung disease. Of the genes differentially methylated, 11.3% exhibited a corresponding significant (p<0.05) change in gene expression with enrichment in pathways related to regulation of mRNA translation and protein synthesis (eIF2 signaling and regulation of eIF4 and p70S6K signaling). Overall, these data demonstrate that light-use waterpipe smoking is associated with epigenetic changes and related transcriptional modifications in the SAE, the cell population demonstrating the earliest pathologic abnormalities associated with chronic cigarette smoking. This study demonstrates that light-use waterpipe smoking in young adults is associated with a broad range of genome-wide DNA methylation-related changes of the SAE impacting a number of genes linked to pathways previously associated with cigarette smoking. Further, many of these methylation-related changes correlate with waterpipe smoking-associated changes in the SAE transcriptome. Together, these data add to the accumulating evidence that waterpipe smoking is harmful, and may lead to lung disease.

Project description:The apical junctional complex (AJC), composed of tight junctions and adherens junctions, is essential for maintaining epithelial barrier function. Since cigarette smoking and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), the major smoking-induced disease, are both associated with increased lung epithelial permeability, we hypothesized that smoking alters the transcriptional program regulating AJC integrity in the small airway epithelium (SAE), the primary site of pathological changes in COPD. Transcriptome analysis revealed a global down-regulation of physiological AJC gene expression in the SAE of healthy smokers (n=53) compared to healthy nonsmokers (n=59), an observation associated with changes in molecular pathways regulating epithelial differentiation such as PTEN signaling and accompanied by induction of cancer-related AJC genes. Genome-wide co-expression analysis identified a smoking-sensitive AJC transcriptional network. The overall expression of AJC-associated genes was further decreased in COPD smokers (n=23). Exposure of human airway epithelial cells to cigarette smoke extract in vitro resulted in down-regulation of several AJC-related genes, accompanied by decreased transepithelial resistance. Thus, cigarette smoking alters the AJC gene expression architecture in the human airway epithelium, providing a molecular basis for the dysregulation of airway epithelial barrier function during the development of smoking-induced lung disease. The apical junctional complex (AJC), composed of tight junctions and adherens junctions, is essential for maintaining epithelial barrier function. Since cigarette smoking and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), the major smoking-induced disease, are both associated with increased lung epithelial permeability, we hypothesized that smoking alters the transcriptional program regulating AJC integrity in the small airway epithelium (SAE), the primary site of pathological changes in COPD. In this study, microarray analysis of the SAE obtained from 53 healthy nonsmokers, 59 healthy smokers, and 23 smokers with COPD was performed to determine physiological AJC gene expression architecture in the SAE and its modification by cigarette smoking and during the development of COPD.

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Cigarette Smoking Induces Small Airway Epithelial Epigenetic Changes with Corresponding Modulation of Gene Expression

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Cigarette smoking induces small airway epithelial epigenetic changes with corresponding modulation of gene expression.

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