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Five innovative research projects supported by Inspiration Awards 2022Valued at a total of $440,000, the Wal-yan Respiratory Research Centre Inspiration Awards 2022 will support five cutting-edge research projects.

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Research into innovative treatments for people with asthma and antibiotic resistance supported by Innovation FellowshipsTwo outstanding researchers from the Wal-yan Respiratory Research Centre have been awarded a 2022 Innovation Fellowship supported by the WA Government's Future Health Research and Innovation (FHRI) Fund.

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New study to better understand how bronchiectasis develops during childhoodA new research project – the WA Paediatric Bronchiectasis Cohort Study – officially commenced this month with the aim of looking at children with bronchiectasis in Western Australia, like nine-year-old Holly (pictured), to better understand how this disease develops during childhood.

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Vertex grant to support research into treatment strategies for cystic fibrosis lung diseaseDr Daniel Laucirica, a research officer with the Wal-yan Respiratory Research Centre, will undertake new research into potential treatment strategies to prevent lung damage in people with cystic fibrosis (CF), under the mentorship of Associate Professor Anthony Kicic - made possible by a Vertex Cyst

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Respiratory research program recruits 400th participant, marking key milestoneIn September 2024, the Western Australian Epithelial Research Program (WAERP) reached a significant milestone by recruiting its 400th participant.

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Kids Easy Breathing Study KickstartsThe Kids Easy Breathing Study kickstarts this month, with the aim of finding out how the airway surface is different between infants who develop chronic lung disease after contracting bronchiolitis compared with those who don’t.

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Study shows climate change will devastate children’s health without fast global actionIncreased numbers of preterm births, higher incidence of respiratory disease and death, and more children in hospitals are some of the stark health outcomes the world is facing from the impacts of extreme climate change.

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Future research focus areas in kids’ lung healthYou play a vital role in determining Wal-yan’s research priorities in kids’ lung health over the next 10 years.

Our team uses AI to quickly analyse large amounts of genetic data to help discover alternate medications and improve existing treatments.
Research
Time to get serious about the detection and monitoring of early lung disease in cystic fibrosisStructural and functional defects within the lungs of children with cystic fibrosis (CF) are detectable soon after birth and progress throughout preschool years often without overt clinical signs or symptoms. By school age, most children have structural changes such as bronchiectasis or gas trapping/hypoperfusion and lung function abnormalities that persist into later life. Despite improved survival, gains in forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1) achieved across successive birth cohorts during childhood have plateaued, and rates of FEV1 decline in adolescence and adulthood have not slowed. This suggests that interventions aimed at preventing lung disease should be targeted to mild disease and commence in early life.