Observed annual average prevalence of respiratory conditions in each scheme.

<p>Enzootic pneumonia (EP), pleurisy (PL), pleuropneumonia (PP), and lung abscess (Abscess).</p

Smooth trend estimates obtained by fitting model 1 to each of the four respiratory conditions.

<p>(Enzootic pneumonia-like lesions (EP), pleurisy (PL), pleuropneumonia (PP), lung abscess (Abscess)). The dotted lines are 2 standard deviations (95.4% confidence interval) from the estimated trend (solid line). The y-axis represents estimates of prevalence levels.</p

Summary of outcomes of the surveillance schemes showing the number of pigs examined and the percentage of cases at animal level for each condition in the three schemes between July 2005 and December 2012.

<p>Summary of outcomes of the surveillance schemes showing the number of pigs examined and the percentage of cases at animal level for each condition in the three schemes between July 2005 and December 2012.</p

Smooth estimates of seasonal patterns obtained by fitting model 1 to each of the four respiratory conditions.

<p>(Enzootic pneumonia-like (EP), pleurisy (PL), pleuropneumoniae (PP), lung abscess (Abscess)). The dotted lines are two standard deviations from the estimated trend (solid line). The y-axis represents estimates of prevalence levels. The x-axis represents the seasons of the year (1 = winter, 2 = spring, 3 = summer and 4 = autumn).</p

Genetic loci associated with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease overlap with loci for lung function and pulmonary fibrosis

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a leading cause of mortality worldwide1. We performed a genetic association in 15,256 cases and 47,936 controls, with replication of select top results (P < 5x10-6) in 9,498 cases and 9,748 controls. In the combined meta-analysis, we identified 22 loci at genome-wide significance, including 13 new associations with COPD. Nine of these 13 loci have been associated with lung function in general population samples2-7; however, 4 (EEFSEC, DSP, MTCL1, and SFTPD) are novel. We noted 2 loci shared with pulmonary fibrosis8,9 (FAM13A and DSP) but with opposite risk alleles for COPD. None of our loci overlapped with genome-wide associations for asthma; however, one locus has been implicated in the joint susceptibility to asthma and obesity10. We also identified genetic correlation between COPD and asthma. Our findings highlight novel loci, demonstrate the importance of specific lung function loci to COPD, and identify potential regions of genetic overlap between COPD and other respiratory diseases