The discovery of a genetic mutation that can cause pulmonary hypertension in cattle grazed at high altitudes could shed new light on lung diseases affecting humans, according to new research published earlier this week in the journal Nature Communications.

The variant, which leads to a life-threatening condition known as brisket disease in cattle, could help uncover the mechanisms behind non-familial pulmonary hypertension in patients that have conditions emphysema and pulmonary fibrosis.