Understanding corticosteroid-sensitive and -insensitive pathways in airway remodelling

哮喘和慢性阻塞性肺疾病（COPD）是影响全世界数百万人的气道慢性疾病。气道被改造或增厚，导致气道阻塞和肺功能下降。澳大利亚每年大约有400名哮喘患者和6000名慢性阻塞性肺病患者死亡。令人担忧的是，慢性阻塞性肺病目前是澳大利亚第四大死因，预计未来这一数字还会增加。不幸的是，目前用于对抗这些疾病的药物收效甚微。我们需要了解如何控制气道重塑，从而能够改善哮喘和COPD的治疗。但首先我们需要对气道重塑发展的分子机制有更深入的了解。有了这个建议，我们将增加我们对哮喘和慢性阻塞性肺病的机制基础的认识，并可能阐明未来药物干预的新治疗靶点。

Asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) are chronic disorders of the airways affecting millions of people worldwide. Airways become remodelled, or thickened, resulting in airway obstruction and decline in lung function. Approximately 400 asthmatics and 6000 COPD sufferers die in Australia each year. Worryingly, COPD is currently the fourth highest cause of death in Australia and this number is predicted to increase in the future. Unfortunately, the drugs currently available for combating these diseases have limited success. We need to understand how to control airway remodelling to be able to improve treatments for asthma and COPD. But first we require a greater understanding of the molecular mechanism-s underlying the development of airway remodelling. With this proposal we will increase our knowledge of the mechanistic basis of asthma and COPD and may elucidate novel therapeutic targets for future pharmacological intervention.