Charles Zuker, Ph.D. Columbia University

CONTACT: Seth Feldman, 415-404-3484

Dr. Charles Zuker, a renowned expert on the nerves that determine taste and smell, has been awarded $750,000 by the American Asthma Foundation (AAF). Dr. Zuker will apply his expertise to asthma by defining the nerves that contract the airways during an asthma attack in order to reduce the severity of these episodes.

Dr. Zuker’s research on asthma will identify:

• the nerves that control airway tightening in asthma,
• nerves that may change lung function in response to lack of oxygen, and
• genes in these nerves that are actively making proteins that are potential therapeutic targets for asthma.

Dr. Zuker is a professor of biochemistry and molecular biophysics and of neuroscience in the College of Physicians and Surgeons at Columbia University. In addition to an AAF awardee, he is also a Howard Hughes Investigator, a member of the National Academy of Sciences and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Dr. Zuker received his Ph.D. at the age of 24 from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

“Innovative and potentially breakthrough projects, like Dr. Zuker’s, are at the heart of the American Asthma Foundation’s approach to funding cutting-edge research needed to eradicate the asthma epidemic,” stated Marion O. Sandler, Chairman of the Board. Continuing on, Sandler said, “The American Asthma Foundation awards have already produced an amazing 17 potential breakthroughs with 11 of these taken up by pharmaceutical companies. After five decades with virtually no improvements, this large number of discoveries in a short time documents the success of our program.”

Over 23 million or one in 13 people in the United States have asthma. More Americans have asthma than coronary heart disease, cancer or Parkinson’s disease. Asthma is the most serious chronic disease of childhood and disproportionately strikes the poor.

A description of Dr. Zuker’s project can be seen at www.americanasthma.org

TO ARRANGE AN INTERVIEW WITH AN AAF EXECUTIVE OR RESEARCHER, OR FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, CONTACT:
Seth D. Feldman, Executive Director, American Asthma Foundation
415-404-3484, sfeldman@americanasthma.org

Charles Zucker, Ph.D. Columbia University	Serpil Erzurum, M.D. Cleveland Clinic	Daniel Minor, Ph.D. University of California San Francisco

CONTACT: Seth Feldman, 415-404-3484
SAN FRANCISCO, Ca., 06/30/2009: Marion O. Sandler, Chairman of the Board of the American Asthma Foundation (AAF), named twelve distinguished scientists, chosen from a pool of 327 applicants, to receive a total of $8 million in research grants. These awards are given to outstanding scientists to investigate cutting-edge approaches to improving treatments, prevention and, eventually, curing asthma. In announcing these awards, Sandler stated, “These grants reflect the AAF’s emphasis on innovation as the major weapon in the fight against asthma, a disease that affects one in every 13 Americans.”

The $8 million will be allocated among awardees who will each receive up to $750,000 over a three-year period. This year’s winners join the past 110 grant recipients researching potentially-groundbreaking approaches to address the asthma epidemic. As in previous years, awardees come from outstanding academic institutions in the United States and foreign countries and include a range of scientific disciplines, such as biology, aerospace engineering, immunology, and imaging. Some of the more innovative programs this year include:

•    How the use of nanotechnology can create an instrument that will detect the type and severity of an asthmatic reaction to various environmental triggers;

•    How a chemical released by rotten eggs may reduce the severity of attacks; and
•    How one’s nerves control airway tightening and how to modify these nerves to inhibit asthmatic reactions.

“The AAF approach is deemed successful by any measure,” stated Seth Feldman, the Executive Director. “American Asthma Foundation awards so far have produced 17 potential breakthrough pathways into new treatments, preventions or cures, with 11 securing pharmaceutical industry investment. Three of these breakthroughs are already in clinical trials.”

To put the AAF contribution in perspective, Feldman added, “Since the American Asthma Foundation began, over $70 million has been granted to awardees to pursue the basic research essential to providing relief to asthma sufferers. These funds total more than all other private money financing for asthma research combined. Moreover, AAF scientists have gone on to secure over $42.5 million in additional funds based on the work begun under the AAF.”

Asthma is a chronic, complex disease that is a major public health problem. Over 23 million- or one in 13 – people in the United States have asthma. – More Americans have asthma than have coronary heart disease or cancer or Parkinson’s disease. Asthma is the most serious chronic disease of childhood and disproportionately strikes the poor.

This year’s winners, along with a brief description of their projects, can be seen at www.americanasthmafoundation.org.

TO ARRANGE AN INTERVIEW WITH AN AAF EXECUTIVE OR RESEARCHER, OR FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, CONTACT:
Seth D. Feldman, Executive Director, American Asthma Foundation
415-404-3484, sfeldman@americanasthma.org

Major Asthma Research Discovery Could Lead to New Drugs

Findings Licensed to Biotechnology Firm

SAN FRANCISCO, California, March 18, 2009: The American Asthma Foundation announced that a significant research discovery they funded has been licensed by a leading biotech company. This move could lead to potential new drugs for treating asthma by blocking certain cell interactions that produce lung inflammation and constrict airways. The studies leading to these findings were conducted by Michael Croft, Ph.D. at the La Jolla Institute for Allergy & Immunology in La Jolla, California, a non-profit biomedical research institute and international leader in immunology research.

Dean Smith, Executive Director of the American Asthma Foundation, said, “The reality of scientific research is that it often takes several decades for a so-called ‘discovery at the bench’ to become an approved product or treatment. There are many, many steps along the way including understanding the underlying science, translating the science to a new drug or therapy, conducting animal and human studies, and progressing through medical approval processes. We are Michael Croft, Ph.D. excited that Dr. Croft’s research finding has now moved to the next phase where its use in potential new drugs to treat asthma can be further explored.”

Discussing the role of the American Asthma Foundation in improving treatment, preventing, and finding a cure for asthma, Ms. Marion O. Sandler, chairman of the Foundation’s board, points out, “The American Asthma Foundation is the only national advocacy group in the United States devoted solely to asthma. Sad to say, there is no cure for asthma and little progress has been made in 50 years in improving treatment. Dr. Croft’s discovery is very significant, not only because of the great need to develop new treatments for asthma but also because of the long lead time and complexity involved in bringing new therapies to market.”

In 2000, Dr. Croft received a three-year early excellence award from the American Asthma Foundation. He and his team focus on the roles that certain proteins play in the ability of the immune system to guard the body against harmful microorganisms. Dr. Croft’s research demonstrated that use of an antibody to block the interaction of these proteins in experimental animal models can substantially reduce the lung inflammation and airway blockage that are symptomatic of asthma attacks. The licensing of this finding is the next step in developing a drug treatment.

Read the full press release here.

Research Finding Could Revolutionize Asthma Treatment

Use of Beta Blockers May Have Long-Term Benefits

SAN FRANCISCO, California, February 25, 2009: The American Asthma Foundation announced a research breakthrough suggesting that, contrary to popular belief, drugs commonly used to treat high blood pressure may also bring relief to many asthma sufferers.

Seth Feldman, Executive Director of the American Asthma Foundation (AAF), said, “Drugs known as beta blockers have long been used to treat high blood pressure. However, they have historically been forbidden for patients with asthma, because they may make the symptoms worse. Now, however, results from a research study funded by the American Asthma Foundation suggest that, over the long run, asthma may well improve with low daily doses of beta blockers.”

The findings were published January 26, 2009 on www.pnas.org, the online edition of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, a prestigious scientific journal. The lead investigator, Dr. Richard Bond, and his colleagues demonstrated the absence of asthma-like symptoms in laboratory mice that do not have the
very receptor that is inhibited by beta blockers. This finding was in agreement with earlier studies by Bond and his colleagues showing that low doses of beta blockers improved asthma in mice.

Expanding on his description of Dr. Bond’s findings, Mr. Feldman comments, “Dr. Bond’s research has used an approach he calls ‘paradoxical pharmacology,’ which simply means that patients may be treated with medicines that may initially worsen symptoms, but over the long run may lead to overall health improvement.” Dr. Bond’s studies led to a small clinical trial of beta blockers with humans, and a second human clinical trial is currently under way using the high blood pressure drug nadolol in patients with mild asthma.

Ms. Marion O. Sandler, Chairman of the Board of the American Asthma Foundation, points out that “Dr. Bond’s findings are especially important at the present time, because there is a great need for new treatments for asthma.” In December 2008, a Food and Drug Administration (FDA) advisory panel recommended that the FDA ban two inhaled drugs for use in asthma, because studies had shown an increased risk of hospitalization and asthma-related deaths. Notably, these two drugs have the opposite effect of beta blockers. Specifically, they clearly improve asthma in the short run, but if taken for long periods they may actually be harmful.

Dr. Bond is a Professor in the Department of Pharmacological and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Houston, Houston. In 2003, he received a three-year early excellence award from the American Asthma Foundation. The AAF sponsors research that investigates new theories about the underlying causes of asthma with the goal of improving treatment and preventing and curing the disease. Dr. Bond’s colleagues included researchers at the University of Houston Department of Pharmacology, Baylor College of Medicine, and the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston.

Read the full press release here.

American Asthma Foundation Announces Breakthrough Discovery

Common House Dust Mites Trigger Asthma Attacks by Tricking the Immune System

San Francisco, California, January 6, 2009: The American Asthma Foundation announced a research breakthrough that explains why tiny, household pests called dust mites are a major source of airborne allergens for patients with allergic asthma.

Seth Feldman, Executive Director of the American Asthma Foundation, explains “that although dust mites are known to trigger asthma attacks, until now we did not know why the allergic response to the mites was so strong.” The mystery was solved as a result of research funded by the American Asthma Foundation’s
Research Program. The results were published December 7, 2008 on www.nature.com, the on-line edition of Nature, a prestigious scientific journal. The lead investigator, Dr. Christopher Karp, and his colleagues found that house dust mites trick the immune system into believing that it is facing a bacterial infection. Thus misinformed, the immune system
mounts a strong allergic response to the mites, a response that can trigger asthma attacks.

Dr. Karp is head of the Division of Molecular Immunology at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center. In 2006, he received a three-year senior investigator award from the American Asthma Foundation’s Research Program. The Program sponsors research that investigates new theories
about the underlying causes of asthma with the goal of improving treatment and curing and preventing the disease. Dr. Karp’s colleagues included researchers at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center and the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, the University of Massachusetts Medical School, the
Department of Internal Medicine at the University of Iowa, and the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Iowa City, Iowa.

Asthma is a chronic, complex disease that is a major public health problem. Nearly one in every 13 people in the United States has asthma — more Americans than have coronary heart disease or cancer or Parkinson’s Disease. Asthma is the most serious chronic disease of childhood and disproportionately strikes the poor.

Read the full article release here.

F.D.A. Panel Votes to Ban Asthma Drugs

ROCKVILLE, Md. — A panel of federal drug experts voted on Thursday that the drugs Serevent and Foradil should be banned from use in the treatment of asthma, but the experts said that Advair and Symbicort, which together are far more popular, should continue to be used.

The experts, gathered by the Food and Drug Administration, said that too many doctors used Serevent and Foradil inappropriately and that asthmatic patients were often fooled by their own symptoms and used them incorrectly. Serevent and Foradil widen lung airways but increase the risks of death unless paired with a steroid. The drugs’labels already warn of this risk but half of patients taking the medicines do not get a steroid. Even when patients are prescribed a steroid, many fail to take it.

GlaxoSmithKline, the maker of Serevent, and Novartis and Schering-Plough, the marketers of Foradil, argued that doctors want the freedom to mix and match these drugs with steroids. But Dr. Jesse Joad, a panel member and pediatrician from the University of California Davis Medical Center, said she did not “want to give a drug that is making the disease you’re treating worse.”

Read the full article release here.