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One in ten Australians have asthma and Dr Kimberley Wang from The Kids Research Institute Australia is on a mission to find out what causes it.

The lungs are one of the last organs in the body to develop as a baby grows. They're also one of the most important.

A The Kids for Child Health Research study has uncovered a new link between vitamin D levels and asthma.

A new study has found that young children with severe or persistent asthma are at higher risk of developing many common mental health problems.

Australian scientists have today launched a world first research trial into a treatment that could prevent asthma in high risk children.

Two Australian scientists are spearheading an international campaign that's challenging the way asthma drugs are developed and tested.

The airway epithelium is the primary structural and functional airway barrier and orchestrates innate immunity. Some children may have underlying epithelial vulnerabilities that contribute to the pathogenesis of acute wheeze and asthma.

Asthma affects more than 300 million people worldwide and is frequently associated with other medical conditions in adults, including chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, ischaemic heart disease, and stroke. Despite the huge burden, there has been little progress toward prevention and cure, possibly related to a one-size-fits-all approach.

Asthma affects > 10% of children in Australia and New Zealand (NZ), with up to 5% of those having severe disease, presenting a management challenge. We aimed to survey tertiary paediatric respiratory services across Australia and NZ using a custom-designed questionnaire, to conduct a cross-sectional observational study of the numbers of children with problematic severe asthma seen, the number treated with biologic therapy, outpatient clinic/multidisciplinary team services available, investigations and tools routinely used and approaches utilised for transition to adult care.

Allergic sensitization and reduced ability to respond to viral infections may contribute to virus-induced wheeze and asthma development in young children. Plasmacytoid dendritic cells (pDC) are rare immune cells that produce type I interferons (IFN-I) and play a key role in orchestrating immune responses against viruses.