Stefano Guerra, MD, PhD, MPH

Club cell secretory protein (CC16) is a protein that is mainly produced in the lung and has important anti-microbial and anti-inflammatory properties, i.e., it protects the airways from infections and exaggerated inflammation. While high levels of CC16 in blood have been associated with protection from accelerated decline of lung function in mid- to late adult life, whether in young adults CC16 is associated with lung function and with small airway abnormalities assessed by CT measurements remains unknown. In this context, This study will use the unique phenotypic characterization and large biorepository of the American Lung Association Lung Health Cohort Research Study to begin to address these questions.

Update:

The main objective of this pilot project is to evaluate associations of circulating CC16 (a protein with protective effects in the lung) with lung function and CT measurements of small airway abnormalities in young adult life in the ALA-LHC (Lung Health Cohort) Study. In the first year of the project we measured CC16 levels in a first batch of 300 LHC plasma samples from young adults. We found that - consistent with our hypothesis - higher levels of the lung-protective protein CC16 were linked to better lung function. On the other hand, having low levels of CC16 was associated with a 2-fold increased risk for asthma and chronic cough and with a 4-fold increased risk for wheezing. Thus, these findings support the importance of conserved levels of CC16 for lung health. We are now in the process of analyzing a second batch of 300 additional LHC plasma samples.