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Asthma Foundation WA Media Release 2016 GENE RESEARCH BENEFITS ASTHMA SUFFERERS 22 February 2016 Dr Svetlana Baltic, Senior Scientist, Molecular Genetics Unit at Harry Perkins Institute of Medical Research was awarded a Project Grant of $26,500 from Asthma Foundation WA (AFWA), as part of the research grants announced during National Asthma Week in September 2013, and the final report from her research has recently been published. Dr Baltic’s research was entitled ‘Aberrant alternative splicing defines the severity of asthma’. Dr Baltic said that ‘we’ve always known that asthma had a link to the immune system, but until now, researchers haven’t understood exactly why the genes involved in the immune system act differently in people with asthma’. ‘Every human cell contains a full range of human genes. But those genes are expressed in different ways – or have different variations – depending on the type of cell. The gene variants are produced by a process called “alternative splicing”. Alternatively spliced genes are a normal phenomenon – around 95% of all human genes are alternatively spliced. But sometimes in disease, the expression of these variations is abnormal, and the cells don’t function as they should’. Dr Baltic noted that ‘in our studies so far, we have shown that there are different variants of genes expressed in people with asthma compared with people without asthma. This difference also determines whether a person has mild or severe asthma. We have also discovered that variants within two specific genes, known as SETD7 and KDM6A can influence the function of the whole immune system, affecting hundreds of genes’. ‘This means that using gene therapy, we can now correct the expression of these variants, and actually change the expression of many of the genes that affect the function of the immune system. This could make a person with asthma’s condition less severe, or maybe cure their asthma all together’. In conclusion Dr Baltic noted that this discovery means the beginning of exciting new work on these gene variants. Now we need to understand the mechanisms of what regulates the ‘alternative splicing’ and expression of specific splice variants, which could mean new treatments for people with asthma’. Asthma Foundation WA Media Release 2016 AFWA CEO Dr Johnson said that ‘Dr Baltic has recently joined AFWA’s Medical and Scientific Advisory Committee (MASAC) which is made up of clinicians, researchers and physicians who are all working at the forefront of respiratory research. We look forward to Dr Baltic’s input and experience to AFWA’s ongoing research funding and her gene research outcomes is very positive for asthmatics’. AFWA, a community based not-for-profit organisation, is a Registered Training Organisation which has been providing services to the WA community for the past 52 years. AFWA’s main role is to fund local research into asthma, provide education and support services for people with asthma and to train health professionals in the most up to date methods in asthma management. ends………. Media Enquiries: Naomi Quinlivan Candy Stripe Public Relations 0408 598 977 [email protected]