According to the EPA, an estimated 22 million Americans suffer from asthma, and 6.5 million of those Americans are under 18, making asthma the leading chronic illness of children in the United States. Pradeep Reddy Marri, an Assistant Research Scientist for the BIO5 institute, has received a $40,000 Pilot Project award from SWEHSC to aid him in his efforts in researching what may be a new important cause of asthma.
He and well known asthma researcher, Fernando Martinez (http://uanews.org/node/23798) are studying the microbiome, which may play an important role in causing asthma. A microbiome is a combination of all the microbes, their genomes, and their interactions in a particular environment. “Asthma is a complex disease that has both genetic and environmental causes, and now we are thinking that the microbiome may be one of the players in this complex disease,” says Marri. “We are very interested to find out what the role of the microbiome is, and how significant it might be.”
Dr. Marri is using a metagenomics approach involving high-throughput sequencing technology to decipher the role of microbiome in asthma. Metagenomics involves the collective sampling of organisms, that cannot be cultured in a laboratory, in their natural environment. The high-throughput sequencing technology employed by Marri will enable to identify several microbes at a time with lesser resources and time.
“The main goals of this project are to further decipher the complexities of asthma taking into account the genetic and environmental factors in combination with the microbiome. We would really like to know if the genetic make up of individuals with asthma makes them predisposed to colonization with a specific group of microbes and find out if results vary based on populations,” says Marri. “I believe the microbiome is one of the key players in figuring out asthma. The far reaching goal of the research is to create better treatments for asthma based on antibiotics if the microbiome does indeed prove to be an important factor.”
Marri, counts himself fortunate to have been given the opportunity to work on this project with an accomplished asthma researcher like Dr. Martinez. “One of the major challenges, going into any project is to find the right collaborators,” Marri explains. “I was fortunate, to be able to work with Dr. Martinez, and to be given support through SWEHSC.” Marri has been interested in genetics for the entirety of his academic career and believes in inter-disciplinary approaches to tackle complex problems such as asthma. He appreciates the highly collaborative atmosphere at BIO5; In fact, this present collaboration is an off shoot of the 'Know Your Neighbor' series of talks in BIO5.
These collaborations are what form and shape our ideas and lead to great discoveries. Marti Lindsey the outreach director for SWEHSC put it best by saying, “It’s the foundations of science that bring us to this place, but it’s the collaborations that bring us to the new discoveries.” What brought Marri to this place was originally a desire to become a medical doctor.
“When I first started out, I wanted to be a medical doctor, but the programs in India are very competitive, and I missed the opportunity by a very narrow margin,” explains Marri. “Now I am glad I can still contribute to human health through my discoveries. Especially now that I am a part of asthma research, at a time when asthma is such a major problem for human health.” In his spare time, Marri, who is also one of the millions affected by childhood asthma, stays healthy by being active. He loves cricket, is in the U of A badminton club, and has a two year old daughter who keeps him up and running. Perhaps, based on her dad’s new research, she and her generation will someday be closer to finding a better treatment for asthma.
