Pathogenic triad in COPD: oxidative stress, protease-antiprotease imbalance, and inflammation

Abstract

Patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) exhibit dominant features of chronic bronchitis, emphysema, and/or asthma, with a common phenotype of airflow obstruction. COPD pulmonary physiology reflects the sum of pathological changes in COPD, which can occur in large central airways, small peripheral airways, and the lung parenchyma. Quantitative or high-resolution computed tomography is used as a surrogate measure for assessment of disease progression. Different biological or molecular markers have been reported that reflect the mechanistic or pathogenic triad of inflammation, proteases, and oxidants and correspond to the different aspects of COPD histopathology. Similar to the pathogenic triad markers, genetic variations or polymorphisms have also been linked to COPD-associated inflammation, protease-antiprotease imbalance, and oxidative stress. Furthermore, in recent years, there have been reports identifying aging-associated mechanistic markers as downstream consequences of the pathogenic triad in the lungs from COPD patients. For this review, the authors have limited their discussion to a review of mechanistic markers and genetic variations and their association with COPD histopathology and disease status.

Keywords: apoptosis; bronchitis; chronic obstructive pulmonary disease; emphysema; senescence.

Figure 1

Histologic features of chronic bronchitis. (A) A section of bronchiole wall with luminal accumulation of mucous, goblet cell hyperplasia, basement membrane thickening (arrow), and scattered mononuclear inflammatory cells. (B) A bronchial wall with squamous metaplasia of the luminal epithelium (arrow head) and hyperplasia of the subepithelial seromucinous glands (arrow). Note: Hemotoxylin-eosin, original magnification ×200.

Figure 2

Histologic features of centrilobular emphysema. A section of lung tissue shows fragmented and “free-floating” alveolar septa (arrow) characteristic of emphysema. Note: Hemotoxylin-eosin, original magnification ×200.

Figure 3

Histologic features of small airways disease. A section of lung tissue shows accumulation of macrophages with smoker’s pigment (arrow) within and around a respiratory bronchiole (arrow head). Note: Hemotoxylin-eosin, original magnification ×200.

Figure 4

Pathogenic triad of COPD: oxidative stress, protease–antiprotease imbalance, and inflammation. Oxidative stress, protease–antiprotease imbalance and inflammation each are important in the pathogenesis of COPD; however, they constantly interact and may at times overlap with each other in the overall pathogenesis of COPD. As a consequence of oxidative stress, in particular cigarette smoking-induced oxidative stress, apoptosis, autophagy, and senescence are each potential lung cell fates. Senescent cells express a pro-inflammatory phenotype. Proteases, such as neutrophil elastase, have been shown in vitro to induce airway epithelial apoptosis, but this relationship has not yet been specifically demonstrated in human subjects. Listed in italics are the genetic polymorphisms that have been reported and discussed in this review, to be associated with COPD or emphysema in that area of the pathogenic triad.