Neurotransmitter Receptor Linked to COPD
March 23, 2009
“DURHAM, N.C., March 20 — Two genetic variants on chromosome 15 are associated with an increased risk of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), especially in smokers, researchers here said.
The association is “powerful enough to make genetic screening of smokers an attractive interventional strategy,” according to David Goldstein, Ph.D., of Duke University Medical Center, and colleagues.
The two variants — single nucleotide polymorphisms or SNPs — are in or near the gene for the a-nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (CHRNA 3/5), which has previously been linked to smoking behavior and lung cancer, the researchers said online in PLoS Genetics…”
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