Virginia Research
The American Lung Association of the Atlantic Coast funds research grants on its own and in cooperation with the national American Lung Association. In Fiscal Year 2007-2008, the ALAAC contributed $717,546 to research grants locally and nationally. For Fiscal Year 2008-2009, we have committed to $665,005 in research funding.
In Virginia, in conjunction with the national American Lung Association, we are funding a research grant and a fellowship in Fiscal Year 2008-2009.
Clinical Patient Care Research Grant
Cynthia Brown, M.D., University of Virginia
"Treatment in Sleep-Disordered Breathing with Nocturnal Nasal InInsufflation in COPD"
Sleep problems often accompany chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). But much remains unknown about the causes of poor sleep in COPD. The researchers hope to better understand these underlying causes and to study a new treatment that may improve sleep quality. They will look at changes in the upper airway muscles during sleep in people with COPD, which result in decreased muscle tone and cause resistance to inhaling. They will investigate how a new device that uses a nasal tube, or cannula, to deliver warm, humidified air at a high flow rate affects breathing during sleep in COPD patients. Preliminary evidence suggests that this device can improve breathing during sleep in COPD patients by applying a small amount of air pressure to the back of the throat during sleep to minimize difficulty with inhaling. Participants will be asked to use the device nightly at home for six weeks, and they will be tested every two weeks to see how sleepy they are. At the end of the study participants will return for an overnight sleep study to see if their overall quality of sleep has improved.
Senior Research Training Fellowship
Taeg Su Kim, Ph.D., University of Virginia
"Regulation of T Cell Responses by Dendritic Cell Subsets in a Pulmonary Viral Infection"
Each year, more than 226,000 people in the U.S. are hospitalized and about 36,000 people die from influenza (flu) infection and its complications, thus making the flu syndrome produced by the virus the eighth leading cause of death in the United States. The researchers will study the immune system's response to infection with the flu virus, focusing on cells called dendritic cells. These cells present the viral flu invaders to immune-system fighter cells called cytotoxic T lymphocytes, which migrate to the lung and promote virus clearance. The knowledge gleaned from this study could lead to the development of better vaccines to protect against lung infection and potential new treatments for other illnesses in the respiratory tract.
