The strong correlation between ADAM33 expression and airway inflammation in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and candidate for biomarker and treatment of COPD

Airway inflammation in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is an amplified response of the normal immune system that occurs as a result of chronic irritation by toxic substances, such as cigarette smoke. This leads to the characteristic pathological changes in the inflammatory cells of COPD patients. ADAM33 has been reported to be involved in the pathogenesis of COPD in East Asia by affecting airway inflammation and other immune responses. The aim of this study was to determine the potential role of ADAM33 (mRNA and soluble levels) as a biomarker of inflammation in COPD patients. This is a case control study using consecutive sampling. The COPD case and control (non-COPD) groups comprised 37 and 29 patients, respectively. We used univariate analysis to assess differences in the parameters between the groups and bivariate analysis to non-parametrically compare these parameters between the two groups. We observed significantly higher mRNA levels of ADAM33 in the COPD patients (10.39 ± 1.76) as compared to that in the non-COPD individuals (6.93 ± 0.39; P < 0.001). The levels of soluble ADAM33 were also significantly higher in the COPD patients (2.188 ± 1.142 ng/ml) compared to the non-COPD individuals (0.487 ± 0.105 ng/ml; P < 0.001). The mRNA and soluble ADAM33 levels were significantly higher in COPD patients compared to those in the parameter-matched non-COPD individuals. Thus, ADAM33 is a potential biomarker and treatment for inflammation in COPD patients.