Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease is the third leading cause of death in the world and thus represents a major challenge for modern medicine. The World Health Organization assumes a significant increase in the number of patients in the future due to the increased presence of risk factors, the most significant of which are active and passive smoking and air pollution. Despite the high prevalence, diagnosis and treatment are still insufficient. A large number of patients have not been diagnosed, partly due to insufficient education of the patients who do not recognize the symptoms, and partly due to insufficient diagnostic methods. Treatment can reduce symptoms and prevent future exacerbations, but it cannot cure the disease. Patients suffering from COPD have a significantly impaired quality of life, and the cost of treatment is a problem for both patients and the health care system. In order to enable timely diagnosis and achieve better treatment outcomes, it is necessary to identify and clarify the pathophysiological mechanisms of the disease that are currently complex and unknown. The aim of this thesis is to review the available data on COPD and extracellular ATP as well as extracellular Hsp70 as potential biomarkers. eATP and eHsp70 are molecules that, when present outside the cell, act as danger-associated molecular patterns. They play an important role in inflammatory processes in various diseases, including COPD, and previous research confirms their association with COPD. Increased concentrations have been reported in patients with COPD compared to healthy subjects. Further research could confirm their role as potential biomarkers that enable earlier diagnosis of the disease and facilitate the classification of patients according to the GOLD guidelines. Knowledge of their exact action and signalling pathways could lead to the development of new diagnostic methods or the discovery of new therapeutic targets, and thus to more successful treatment and reduced mortality.