An internationally renowned researcher at the Phoenix Children’s Research Institute at the University of Arizona College of Medicine – Phoenix was awarded $3 million from the National Institutes of Health to develop new treatment methods for lung disease in premature infants.
Babies born prematurely often have underdeveloped lungs and may experience breathing problems or neonatal lung diseases that require long-term treatment or even lung transplantation.
“Medical advancements mean we can save babies at earlier gestational ages, but that means at times they’re born before their lungs are fully developed, which comes with severe complications,” said Vlad Kalinichenko, director of the Phoenix Children’s Research Institute and a professor in the Department of Child Health. “This new funding allows us to explore new drugs, signaling mechanisms and targeted drug delivery systems, which can be used to develop innovative approaches for treatment of serious neonatal lung diseases.”
Kalinichenko, whose 20-year research career has centered on improving health outcomes for premature infants with respiratory conditions, will use the $3 million grant from the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, a division of the NIH, to investigate a new treatment for bronchopulmonary dysplasia, or BPD.
BPD, which is among the most severe complications for premature infants, is a form of chronic lung disease that damages the lungs and airways, leading to difficulties in breathing due to low oxygenation rates in alveoli.
The grant will support the development of innovative treatments for BPD using gene therapy with a focus on nanoparticle-based deliveries that accelerate blood vessel formation. Additionally, the study will investigate a novel cell therapy that focuses on transplanting endothelial progenitor cells that line and protect blood vessels.
For Kalinichenko and his team, the goal is to diversify approaches for treatments, especially in delivering therapeutic agents into premature lungs with high efficiency and precision.
