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(1) Background and objectives: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a leading cause of mortality throughout the world. In addition to genetics, increasing evidence suggests that Vitamin D (VitD) might be involved in different pathogenic mechanisms in COPD. Furthermore, the prevalence of VitD insufficiency is exceptionally high in COPD patients and increases with the severity. Based on the above, we first tested the relation between the top 10 single nucleotide polymorphisms from genome-wide association studies and the risk of COPD. Then, we investigated whether VitD levels might also have a role in COPD. A meta-analysis followed, combining our participants with previously published European and non-European populations (15,716 cases and 48,107 controls). (2) Methods: 631 Lebanese participants were recruited, of which ~28% were affected with COPD. Demographic and clinical data were collected, and DNA was genotyped using Kompetitive allele-specific PCR (KASPTM). Adjusted multiple logistic regression models were used. Bonferroni corrections were also applied. The statistical power was also assessed. (3) Results: Both rs6837671A&gt, G in FAM13A and VitD levels were significantly associated with increased risk of COPD (OR = 1.75, p = 0.01, and OR = 3.10, p &lt, 0.001 respectively). An interaction between rs6837671A&gt, G in FAM13A and VitD levels, which increased COPD risk, was found (OR = 3.35 and p &lt, 0.001). The meta-analysis showed that rs6837671G increases COPD risk in populations from different origins, Europeans, Asians, and now in Middle-Eastern. (4) Conclusions: Our results suggest that rs6837671A&gt, G in FAM13A is a trans-ethnic genetic variant that interact with VitD to affect COPD.

Biological markers can help to better identify a disease or refine its diagnosis. In the present study, the association between surfactant protein D (SP-D) and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) was studied among subjects consulting for respiratory diseases or symptoms and was compared with C-reactive protein (CRP) and fibrinogen. A further aim of this study was to identify the optimal cut-off point of SP-D able to discriminate COPD patients. A case-control study including 90 COPD patients, 124 asthma patients and 180 controls was conducted. Standardized questionnaires were administered and lung function tests were performed. Biological markers were measured in blood samples according to standardized procedures. The association between SP-D and COPD was investigated using logistic regression models. Receiver-operating characteristic curves were used for threshold identification. SP-D levels above the median value were positively associated with COPD [adjusted odds ratio (OR)=3.86, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.51-9.85, P=0.005). No associations with COPD or asthma were found for CRP or fibrinogen levels. Scores for COPD diagnosis in all COPD patients or ever-smoker COPD patients were identified (sensitivity, 76.4 and 77.8%; specificity, 89.3 and 88.5%, respectively). The results indicate that SP-D can differentiate COPD from other respiratory symptoms or diseases. Used with socio-demographic characteristics and respiratory symptoms, SP-D is able to discriminate COPD patients from controls, particularly among smokers.

Background: Surfactant protein D (SP-D), a promising systemic biomarker of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) was never evaluated in the Lebanese population. Objective: The validity of serum SP-D as a biomarker for COPD, in comparison with C-reactive protein (CRP) and fibrinogen was investigated. Associations between SP-D levels and lung function tests and the value of combining SP-D and the Diagnosis Score of COPD (DS-COPD) for COPD diagnosis were also evaluated. Methods:90 COPD patients and 452 controls were recruited. Standardized questionnaires, lung function tests, COPD diagnosis (GOLD 2013), and blood collection were performed. Serum SP-D and CRP, and plasma fibrinogen levels were measured by ELISA. Associations between biological markers with lung function parameters and COPD were estimated by spearman correlation and logistic regression models respectively. Results: Median serum SP-D levels for COPD patients were 1510 ng/mL (from 986 to 2174 ng/mL). SP-D levels were positively associated with age and pack-years in controls (all p