Scientists honoured for their bid to ease lung disease misery
University staff join world-class team of researchers
Paisley researchers battling to ease the impact of a serious lung disease have won a leading healthcare award.
Scientists from the University of the West of Scotland and universities in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland were presented with the Project of the Year Award at the Northern Ireland Healthcare Awards.
They have been working on chronic obstructive pulmonary disease ( COPD) which is incurable and is a leading cause of deaths worldwide.
It is particularly prevalent in both Ayrshire and Arran and Dumfries and Galloway.
The £ 6.8million EU Interreg VA- funded Breath project has established a world-class team of researchers who will help address the causes, treatment and potential prevention of the disease.
And central to the project is the training of a team of new PhD students in respiratory research.
Of the 17 PhDs appointed, five are primarily based at the University of the West of Scotland.
Professor John Lockhart, Breath partner at the University of the West of Scotland, said: “Throughout the five- year project, more than 30 researchers and doctoral students will work together to better understand COPD and raise awareness of the disease.
“This will help encourage prevent ative measure s, timely treatment and disease management.
“The strength of the Breath programme is that, as with all the PhDs appointed, these students benefit from the combined expertise provided across all three institutions.
“The University of the West of Scotland has an international track record on research in inflammation and immune dysfunction, Dundalk Institute of Technology ( DkIT) has a well- established programme on smooth muscle research and Queen’s University Belfast provides the clinical and scientific expertise on lung research.
“The four-year PhD programme plan includes placements with partners to ensure students receive dedicated training across these linked centres of expertise.”
Gina McIntyre, CEO of the SEUPB (Special EU Programmes Body), which manages the Interreg VA Programme, said: “We are very proud to fund this exciting and inspirational project, leading the way forward on research for a life-threatening condition that affects millions of people living not only in Europe, but across the world.
“This cross-border partnership, including scientists and academics from Scotland, Northern Ireland and Ireland, supported by the European Union’s Interreg VA Programme, will share knowledge and work together for a solution to a shared problem, representing exactly what the programme is designed to do.”
The University of the West of Scotland has an international track record on research