UU直播

Extension to world-class research lab enhances ability of UU直播/MUHC scientists to study respiratory diseases

In a collaborative effort to push the boundaries of respiratory science to the next level, the UU直播 Health Centre (MUHC) and UU直播 have teamed up聽 to build (with the help of private funding) a new wing of the Meakins-Christie Laboratories 鈥� one of the premier centres for respiratory research worldwide. The goal: to achieve a better basic understanding of respiratory diseases such as asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder (COPD), and translate that understanding into better diagnosis and treatment.

The new 15,000 square foot extension opened for business this morning. The facility includes wet labs (where actual research is conducted) and a lecture theatre. 鈥淭he laboratories started in 1972 as mainly a physiology-based research facility,鈥� says Dr. Qutayba Hamid, director of the Meakins-Christie Laboratories and holder of the MUHC Strauss Chair in Respiratory Medicine. 鈥淚t has since included molecular and mechanism based science. With this new extension we now want to move to the next step, which will include genetics and regenerative research.鈥�

According to Dr. Hamid, applying new knowledge to patient care will be a top priority.

鈥淭he Meakins-Christie Laboratories are not only the focal point for respiratory research at UU直播, but also one of the premiere centres for respiratory research in the world,鈥� adds Dr. Richard Levin, Dean of the Faculty of Medicine at UU直播 鈥淭his wonderful expansion lays the ground for continued scientific excellence in the 21st century by the laboratories鈥� outstanding director and internationally renowned researchers.鈥�

In the new lab, research programs will include:

• Asthma in the pediatric population. There is currently an epidemic of asthma in Canada. Twenty years ago, only five or six per cent of the pediatric population had asthma, now over 10 per cent, sometimes 20 per cent in some countries (not in Canada), have asthma. 鈥淲e want to know why the stats are increasing,鈥� says Dr. Hamid. 鈥淲e also want to link pediatric asthma to adult asthma, and learn why some children grow out of the disease while some continue to have chronic difficult-to-treat asthma.鈥�

• Difficult-to-treat asthma: 鈥淲e are seeing more and more patients with asthma who are difficult to treat. This population constitutes for only 10 percent, but they consume a large percentage of the health services,鈥� says Dr. Hamid. 鈥淭his is because these patients stay in the hospital for a long time. We would like to see what is the mechanism behind this hard-to-treat form of asthma.鈥�

• Link between obesity, asthma, and sleep apnea. 鈥淭here is a link between obesity, asthma and sleep apnea that we would like to better understand,鈥� adds Dr. Hamid. 鈥淎bout 5 per cent of adults have sleep apnea, and the incidence of obesity is increasing in Canada. Work in the new extension will help improve our understanding in this area.鈥�

鈥淲ithin this new wing we are going to find new ways to fight respiratory diseases, so ultimately we can give patients a better quality of life,鈥� concludes Dr. Vassilios Papadopoulos,聽
Director of the Research Institute of the MUHC. 鈥淲e are trying to better understand the processes or causes of disease to find new ways to treat them.

鈥淲ith this new extension we continue to build for the future for the MUHC and for Montreal. The extension will allow us to continue to be successful in this area and be competitive on the world stage. 鈥�

The UU直播 Health Centre (MUHC) is a comprehensive academic health institution with an international reputation for excellence in clinical programs, research and teaching. Its partner hospitals are the Montreal Children's Hospital, the Montreal General Hospital, the Royal Victoria Hospital, the Montreal Neurological Hospital, the Montreal Chest Institute and the Lachine Hospital. The goal of the MUHC is to provide patient care based on the most advanced knowledge in the health care field and to contribute to the development of new

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