The CURE project, funded by the European Union through the Horizon 2020 framework, aims to develop personalised asthma care through the use of phage (virus) therapies. Researchers are working to address the immune dysregulation characteristic of the disease and eventually develop a cure for the more than 30 million Europeans living with asthma. The project consortium consists of ten partners including universities, industry partners, and EFA.
EFA has managed several tasks related to the communication and dissemination of project developments, both within the project amongst partners and externally to patients, patient organisations and civil society. Most recently, EFA published a newsletter featuring an interview with a CURE researcher, key project milestones and other important findings.
Despite delays due to COVID-19, CURE partners have been hard at deliver the following:
- A one-year follow-up with healthy and asthmatic patients by the Swiss Institute of Allergy and Asthma Research (SIAF)
- Evidence that bacteriophages can improve cell viability and reduce inflammation, found by SIAF and the Biomedical Foundation of the Academy of Athens
- Scientific models to study the microbial composition of the respiratory tract over time, designed by the University of Manchester
In addition to project work, CURE partners also worked hard to understand the effects of COVID on respiratory conditions such as allergy and asthma:
- Ethnikon kai Kapodistriakon Panepistimion Athinon (N.K.U.A) submitted statements for a World Allergy Initiative on acute asthma management during COVID-19
- Nikos Papadopoulos of N.K.U.A and think tank ‘Pediatric Asthma in Real Life,’ promoted practice adjustments and research on asthma management before and during the pandemic
- SIAF was involved in the publication of 30 articles related to COVID-19 infections, in collaboration with Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University and European Academy of Allergy and Clinical Immunology - EAACI
- Biomedical Research Foundation of the Academy of Athens (BRFAA) conducted a study on mechanisms underlying the severity of respiratory illness observed in patients infected with SARS-CoV-2, compared to other viral infections
- The University of Manchester, led by Prof. R. Tucker Gilman, researched the impact of COVID-19 in refugee camps
Read more about these exciting developments in the CURE newsletter here.
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