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Advancing Innovation in Respiratory Health

The Advancing Innovation in Respiratory (AIR) Health Team is a multi-disciplinary group with skills in clinical medicine, physiology, psychology, and in cellular and molecular biology, that are committed to improving the lives of children with respiratory diseases and their families.

The Advancing Innovation in Respiratory (AIR) Health Team is committed to improving respiratory health through big-data, cohort studies, and clinical trials. We aim to develop innovative ways to diagnose, prevent, and treat lung disease in early life to improve quality of life and reduce the overwhelming burden of disease on children, families, communities, and healthcare systems.

Through local, national and international collaborations, the team will accelerate innovation and translation of discoveries into clinical practice and policy.

The AIR Health Team has two major areas of focus: Cystic Fibrosis (CF) and Asthma.

Cystic Fibrosis (CF)

CF is the most common chronic, life-shortening genetic condition affecting Australians. To support both local and international research, the AIR Health Team hosts the BANK CF Biobank, a collection of biological samples and clinical data from CF studies. This resource enables research into CF and broader respiratory conditions, facilitating the development of new treatments and improving patient outcomes.

Asthma

Asthma and wheezing disorders are common in children, affecting up to 30% in Western Australia, and impose a significant burden on families and the healthcare system. The AIR Health Team uses data-driven approaches to improve care, focusing on early risk prediction, molecular pathways, and community burden. Key initiatives include developing an interferon-based diagnostic test to identify high-risk children, characterising cohort data for respiratory and allergic disease in early life, and characterising asthma prevalence and “treatable traits” in the community to guide resource allocation and optimise models of care.

Team leader

David Hancock

Head, AIR Health Team

Advancing Innovation in Respiratory Health projects

Featured projects

RHINO

RHINO researchers from The Kids' Wal-yan Respiratory Research Centre, will analyse ORIGINS data and turn it into meaningful respiratory and allergy outcome data that can be used by researchers around the world.

Learn more about RHINO

March 2026

SHIP CT: A Phase 3 randomised, double-blind, controlled trial of inhaled 7% hypertonic saline versus 0.9% isotonic saline for 48 weeks in patients with Cystic Fibrosis at 3-6 years of age in parallel with the North American SHIP clinical trial.

SHIP-CT, led by Professor Stephen Stick, Director of the Wal-yan Respiratory Research Centre at The Kids, is a unique study in preschool-aged children (from 3-6 years of age) with CF using images of the lung from chest CT scans as the main outcome measure.

Learn more about SHIP CT: A Phase 3 randomised, double-blind, controlled trial of inhaled 7% hypertonic saline versus 0.9% isotonic saline for 48 weeks in patients with Cystic Fibrosis at 3-6 years of age in parallel with the North American SHIP clinical trial.

October 2020

Reports and Findings

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A differentiated nasal epithelial cell model derived from children with acute wheeze and asthma

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 Published research Academic Biostatistics Cancer Immunotherapy Airway Epithelial Research Foundations of Lung Disease Advancing Innovation in Respiratory Health Children’s Respiratory Science BREATH Child and adolescent health Lung function

Conservation of gene expression patterns between the amniotic and nasal epithelium at birth

Amniotic epithelial cells are fetal-derived stem cells, capable of differentiating into all three germ layers, including mature epithelial cell populations. Here, we hypothesised that the amniotic epithelium might serve as a surrogate tissue source for investigating transcriptional profiles in the respiratory epithelium of newborns.

Published research ORIGINS Airway Epithelial Research Advancing Innovation in Respiratory Health Clinical Epigenetics Subsite: Walyan Child and adolescent health

What goes up must come down: dynamics of type 1 interferon signaling across the lifespan

Type 1 interferons (T1IFNs) are typically expressed in low concentrations under homeostatic conditions, but upon pathogenic insult or perturbation of the pathway, these critical immune signaling molecules can become either protectors from or drivers of pathology. While essential for initiating antiviral defense and modulating inflammation, dysregulation of T1IFN signaling can contribute to immunopathology, making it and its associated pathways prime targets for immune evasion and disruption by pathogens. 

Published research Infectious Diseases Airway Epithelial Research Advancing Innovation in Respiratory Health Subsite: Walyan COVID-19 Immune system Immunology and Breast Feeding

Climate change policies fail to protect child health

National policies are essential for countries to adapt to the negative health impacts of climate change. Children are disproportionately affected by these impacts and must be at the heart of adaptation policies to address their vulnerabilities. Adaptation commitments worldwide are integrated into national adaptation plans, nationally determined contributions, national communications, and other multisectoral policies. We aimed to evaluate how effectively national climate change policies worldwide plan to protect child health, considering a range of determinants for successful child-health adaptation.

Advancing Innovation in Respiratory Health Subsite: Walyan Children’s Respiratory Science Child and adolescent health Climate change
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