Ecogenomics of Respiratory Diseases of Public Health Significance

Gene-environment interactions are the indisputable cause of most respiratory diseases. However, we still have very limited understanding of the mechanisms that guide these interactions. Although the conceptual approaches to environmental genomics were established several decades ago, the tools are only now available to better define the mechanisms that underlie the interactions among these important etiological features of lung disease. In this article, we summarize recent insights in the environmental genomics (ecogenomics) of common nonmalignant respiratory diseases (asthma, COPD, pulmonary fibrosis, and respiratory infections), describe the framework of gene-environment interactions that inform the pathogenesis of respiratory diseases, and propose future research directions that will help translate scientific advances into public health gains.