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The Australian government is providing more than $15 million to Monash University and Atisama Therapeutics to revolutionise the treatment of chronic lung disease with the clinical development of a novel inhaled RNA medicine.
The inhaled therapy has the potential to transform the management of lung diseases such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease which affects at least 1 in 20 adults and 1 in 10 Indigenous Australians over 40 years old.
Current treatment, focuses on managing symptoms, whereas this new innovative medicine will be developed to slow functional decline, prevent disease exacerbations and improve long-term outcomes.
To combat chronic lung disease, the RNA therapy is breathed into the lungs using a nebuliser device, where it acts to suppress the inflammation and scarring that drives disease progression.
The therapy belongs to a novel transformative class of medicines, pioneered in Australia, that enables precision treatment for lung diseases.
Led by Professor Merlin Thomas, the team will evaluate the inhaled therapy’s safety, tolerability, and effectiveness in humans for the first time, starting with clinical trials.
The grant is one of 81 recently awarded through the Medical Research Future Fund totalling almost $270 million for a wide range of research projects including First Nations health, Alzheimer’s disease detection and treatment, adolescent mental health, stem cell treatments and more.
