Dai L, et al. - As endocan, a novel inflammatory marker, is associated with a variety of inflammatory diseases, researchers explored its potential role in COPD. They measured the concentration of endocan, Fas and Fas ligand (Fas-L) in plasma from 27 healthy volunteers, 55 COPD patients and 36 acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (AECOPD) patients using magnetic luminex screening assays. Findings revealed reduced lung ventilation function in correlation to elevated circulating endocan levels in COPD and AECOPD patients. In addition, because of its possible influential role in apoptosis in COPD, endocan was suggested to play a role in COPD pathogenesis.