September 25 , 2006

Contact:
- Andrew Weisser, (818) 703-6444, aweisser@earthlink.net
www.californialung.org
or your local American Lung Association at (800) LUNG-USA

American Lung Association of California Grants Nearly $700,000 to Lung Disease Research

--Studies Into Asthma, Lung Cancer, and COPD Offer Hope to Five Million Californians With Lung Disease

(September 25, 2006, OAKLAND) Research offers hope to the more than five million Californians afflicted with lung diseases like asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Recently the American Lung Association of California granted nearly $700,000 to lung disease research, funding 12 scientists in California who are conducting basic research into the mechanisms of disease and 20 Asthma Clinical Research Centers across the country.

“All of the effective treatments we have today came from basic research,” said Timothy Morris, MD, chair of the American Lung Association of California’s Research Training Review Committee. “Treatments for lung diseases like pneumonia and tuberculosis are now considered routine, but it wasn’t that long ago these diseases were incurable. Basic research led us down the right track.”

The association awarded $340,000 through its peer-reviewed scientific research program, including one Pulmonary Nurse Scholarship. Every year the American Lung Association of California reviews applications from researchers and nursing students across the state and grants up to $50,000 to research projects that meet its guidelines and up to $6,000 to master’s level nursing students who are pursuing careers in pulmonary care.

More than $353,000 went to support the American Lung Association’s nationwide network of Asthma Clinical Research Centers, including one at the University of California, San Diego. It is the country’s largest not-for-profit network of clinical research centers dedicated to asthma.

Researchers in San Diego are currently enrolling people with asthma for a new national asthma study to examine the effect of acid reflux on asthma. Acid reflux occurs when stomach acid backs up into the esophagus, which can worsen asthma symptoms. Participants will be randomly selected to receive either acid reflux medication or an inactive tablet for six to eight months.

“Especially for lung diseases that are still causing serious problems, like lung cancer, basic research holds the answer,” Dr. Morris said. “Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths in this country. Better treatment and prevention options will only come through research.”

Ming Liu, MD, is investigating the role of a specific protein (COX-2) found in increased amounts in many lung tumor cells. Specifically, she is looking at two growth factors and the mechanism by which they stimulate the production of this protein.

“The big question is if we can find a way to block the COX-2 protein, can we possibly inhibit the progress of tumors,” said Dr. Liu, who is conducting her study at the David Geffen School of Medicine at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA).

The researcher worked with lung cancer patients in medical school and was shocked by the high mortality rate. “I really felt their pain and the urgent need for better treatments,” she said. “I’m hoping eventually we’ll find a way to prevent lung cancer.”

Other funded studies focus on tuberculosis, emphysema, lung transplant rejection, pulmonary fibrosis, and the effect of air pollution on the airways. The American Lung Association of California launched its research program in 1958 and in the last decade alone has granted nearly $8 million in California.

The association currently awards research grants in three categories representing various stages in an investigator’s career. Research Training Fellowships are for researchers in training, while Research Grants and Clinical Research Grants are for new investigators who are not yet established.

This year’s Research Grants include:

Vedang Londhe, MD, at the University of California, Los Angeles, is studying whether exposure to infection in the womb is a potential cause for bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD), found mostly in premature babies, so that eventually BPD can be prevented.

Karen L. Oslund, DVM, Ph.D., at the University of California, Davis, is investigating the role of a protein that protects the lining of the airways after exposure to irritants like air pollution and causes inflammation to determine whether lungs that produce excess amounts are more resistant to injury.

Beatrice Saviola, Ph.D., at Western University of Health Sciences, is studying how the bacterium that causes tuberculosis can sense environmental stresses and resist them in order to survive in the body so that new therapies can be developed that target this mechanism and make the bacterium more sensitive to the immune system’s defenses.

This year’s Research Training Fellowships include:

Karen Atabai, MD, at the University of California, San Francisco, is examining how a protein facilitates the removal of cells that are killed off in response to a lung injury in hopes of developing better treatments for fibrosis.

Christoph Grundner, Ph.D., at the University of California, Berkeley, is investigating proteins that help tuberculosis bacterium “turn off” immune cells’ ability to kill bacterium in order to develop new treatments that target these proteins.

Stijn PJ De Langhe, Ph.D., at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, is studying defects in the development of smooth muscle cells that lead to emphysema in adults and underdeveloped lungs in premature babies to find new strategies for improving lung development and treating emphysema.

Liu Ming, MD, Ph.D., at the University of California, Los Angeles, is investigating how two specific growth factors stimulate the production of a protein reported to play an important role in lung cancer development to determine whether controlling these growth factors could slow cancer growth.

Fiona Murray, Ph.D., at the University of California, San Diego, is examining a chemical in the body that dilates blood vessels and the two enzymes that control it to eventually find better medications for primary pulmonary hypertension, which causes blood vessels that supply the lungs to constrict.

Roland Nador, MD, at Stanford University, is studying a combination of selective radiation treatment, injection of a substance that depletes immune cells, and bone marrow cell infusion from the organ donor to see if it can reduce organ rejection after a lung transplant.

Jeremie Roux, Ph.D., at the University of California, San Francisco, is investigating how a defense mechanism interferes with an inflammatory molecule in acute lung injury and restores normal fluid transport in the lungs to set the stage for potential treatments.

Mark Travis, Ph.D., at the University of California, San Francisco, is determining how a protein found on the surface of nearly all cells can activate another protein that plays an important role in both pulmonary fibrosis and pulmonary edema to find novel therapies for controlling these lung diseases.

This year’s Clinical Research Grant includes:

Joseph Lin, MD, at Stanford University, is studying alveolar stem cells from mice in order to gain insights into normal lung repair and eventually expand these lung cells in tissue culture so they can be used to treat acute lung injury.

The American Lung Association of California awarded a Pulmonary Nurse Scholarships to Michelle Murray, RN, at the University of California, San Francisco. Highly trained pulmonary nurses are critical to the specialized care needed by lung disease patients.

For 100 years, the American Lung Association has been the lead organization working to prevent lung disease and promote lung health. Lung disease death rates continue to increase while other leading causes of death have declined. The American Lung Association funds vital research on the causes of and treatments for lung disease. With the generous support of the public, the American Lung Association is “Improving life, one breath at a time.” For more information about the American Lung Association or to support the work it does, call 1.800.LUNG.USA (1.800.586.4872) or visit www.californialung.org or www.lungusa.org.call 1-800-LUNG-USA (1-800-586-4872) or visit www.californialung.org.