Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a heterogeneous syndrome defined by the presence of chronic airflow limitation and associated with other clinical and pathological hallmarks, such as chronic bronchitis, emphysema, exacerbations, and comorbidities. COPD is a complex disease, suggesting that both genetic susceptibility and environmental exposures (eg, cigarette smoking and smoke from biomass fuels) contribute to its pathogenesis (figure). In The Lancet Respiratory Medicine, Louise Wain and colleagues report intriguing novel insights into the genetics of smoking behaviour and the airflow obstruction component of COPD.

Citado: Brusselle GG, Bracke KR. Elucidating COPD pathogenesis by large-scale genetic analyses. Lancet Respir Med [Internet]. 2015 [citado 7 Nov 2017];3(10).