Physiology Commons^™

Modeling The Influence Of Vitamin D Deficiency On Cigarette Smoke-Induced Emphysema, Mardi A. Crane-Godreau, Candice C. Black, Andrew J. Giustini, Tenzin Dechen, Jihan Ryu, James A. Jukosky, Hong-Kee Lee, Katherine Bessette, Nora R. Ratcliffe, P. Jack Hoopes, Steven Fiering, John A. Kelly, J. C. Leiter

Dartmouth Scholarship

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a major cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. While the primary risk factor for COPD is cigarette smoke exposure, vitamin D deficiency has been epidemiologically implicated as a factor in the progressive development of COPD-associated emphysema. Because of difficulties inherent to studies involving multiple risk factors in the progression of COPD in humans, we developed a murine model in which to study the separate and combined effects of vitamin D deficiency and cigarette smoke exposure. During a 16-week period, mice were exposed to one of four conditions, control diet breathing room air (CD-NS), control …