Smoking accelerates aging of the small airway epithelium.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Aging involves multiple biologically complex processes characterized by a decline in cellular homeostasis over time leading to a loss and impairment of physiological integrity and function. Specific cellular hallmarks of aging include abnormal gene expression patterns, shortened telomeres and associated biological dysfunction. Like all organs, the lung demonstrates both physiological and structural changes with age that result in a progressive decrease in lung function in healthy individuals. Cigarette smoking accelerates lung function decline over time, suggesting smoking accelerates aging of the lung. Based on this data, we hypothesized that cigarette smoking accelerates the aging of the small airway epithelium, the cells that take the initial brunt of inhaled toxins f

SUBMITTER: Walters MS 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4189169 | biostudies-literature | 2014 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature