AAT deficiency is a genetic disorder that affects around 100,000 people in the USA, including 1-3% of all people diagnosed with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). In AAT deficient people diagnosed with COPD, it was originally believed the cause of the disease was due to a lack of supply of alpha-1 antitrypsin. However, early information gathered in our laboratory suggests another cause of the development of COPD and the progressing of the disease may be due to a malfunction in macrophages.~CF is also a genetic disorder which affects 1/300 births among the Caucasian population. One of the main symptoms of CF is inflammation of the lung tissue. Lung macrophages play a major role in lung inflammation as well as in helping to resolve the inflammation.~Inflammation is an important defense of the body. It is the body's response to infection causing germs and things that may cause irritation, as well as, a way for the body to repair damaged tissue.~We suggest that the effects of AAT deficiency and CF decreases the inflammation response in the lungs and also restricts the ability of macrophages to correct that inflammation once it occurs.
The purpose of this study is to look at how Alpha-1-antitrypsin (AAT) deficiency and Cystic Fibrosis (CF) affect white blood cells in the lungs, called macrophages, and their ability to work.