A Dublin-based medical team working towards finding a cure for asthma has been awarded a €600,000 grant.
The team, headed by Dr Conor Burke, consultant at the Department of Respiratory Medicine at the Connolly hospital in Blanchardstown was awarded the initial grant of €600,000, following a competition for a European Commission-funded project to help find a cure for asthma, which affects 470,000 people in Ireland and 32 million worldwide.
The GABRIEL Project brings together over 150 scientists from 14 European countries. It uses the latest research across a variety of disciplines, including genetics, epidemiology and immunology to identify key factors in the development of asthma.
Ireland has the fourth highest prevalence of asthma worldwide. The condition kills at least one person per week in Ireland, a third of whom are aged under 40.
“Our job now is to translate research laboratory findings in the field of asthma and develop them into new and better treatments,” Dr Burke said.