Blue Journal Conference. Aging and Susceptibility to Lung Disease

Abstract

The aging of the population in the United States and throughout the developed world has increased morbidity and mortality attributable to lung disease, while the morbidity and mortality from other prevalent diseases has declined or remained stable. Recognizing the importance of aging in the development of lung disease, the American Thoracic Society (ATS) highlighted this topic as a core theme for the 2014 annual meeting. The relationship between aging and lung disease was discussed in several oral symposiums and poster sessions at the annual ATS meeting. In this article, we used the input gathered at the conference to develop a broad framework and perspective to stimulate basic, clinical, and translational research to understand how the aging process contributes to the onset and/or progression of lung diseases. A consistent theme that emerged from the conference was the need to apply novel, systems-based approaches to integrate a growing body of genomic, epigenomic, transcriptomic, and proteomic data and elucidate the relationship between biologic hallmarks of aging, altered lung function, and increased susceptibility to lung diseases in the older population. The challenge remains to causally link the molecular and cellular changes of aging with age-related changes in lung physiology and disease susceptibility.

Mechanisms of Lung Fibrosis Resolution

“…The incidence of IPF increases more than fivefold when comparing adults 45 to 54 years of age with those >75 years of age. 84 Recent reviews in aging biology have identified specific biological processes that are altered in aging, and several have been associated with human pulmonary fibrosis disorders, including genomic instability, telomere erosion, epigenetic changes, proteostasis, and cellular senescence. 85 Several investigators demonstrate that aged fibroblasts are profibrotic.…”

Role of macrophage migration inhibitory factor in age-related lung disease

“…MIF and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. COPD is the third leading cause of death in the United States and occurs predominately among individuals greater than 45 years of age (112,140). COPD is associated with an increase in cellular senescence, DNA damage, and oxidative stress (5,144,157,161).…”

Association between dementia and discharge status in patients hospitalized with pneumonia

“…Pneumonia and dementia are major concerns as societies age worldwide [1,2]. They frequently coexist [3]; pneumonia is the most common cause of death in patients with dementia [4,5], and dementia is a well-recognized risk factor for community acquired pneumonia [6] and aspiration pneumonia [7] in the elderly.…”