Methodologies or technologies required to beneficially impact on asthma research
| Method | Description |
| NGS eQTL epigenetic, and array platforms | RNA-seq, array techniques that capture all expressed genes in a sample. Can identify new mechanisms and suggest biomarkers. eQTL can relate SNPs to expression of genes in patient samples proving some translation of genetic effects. |
| GWAS and exome sequencing | GWAS identifies SNPs associated with diseases such as asthma. An association of an SNP does not necessarily inform on a mechanism. Exome sequence refers to sequencing the exons and other specified parts of that gene, such as adjacent promoter sequences. |
| Metabolomics | Analysis of biomarkers either by mass spectrometry or other protein analysis, e.g. bromotyrosine in urine. |
| Lipidomics | Analysis of pro-inflammatory and pro-resolving lipid networks by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry in sputum, BAL or plasma. |
| Volatile organic compounds | Detects organic compounds identified by mass spectrometry in non-invasive samples such as exhaled breath. Can detect viruses and bacteria in theory. |
| Nasosorption and Bronchosorption | Detects proteins in very small volumes of biological fluid. Has been applied to the nose and lung in detecting rare cytokines. |
| Mathematical modelling | Can predict the efficacy of a new therapy, or how a new model may behave. This may replace executing the actual experimental work. |
| Machine learning | Can interrogate big datasets in a free and non-hypothesis-driven manner. Can be useful in the formulation of new hypotheses. |
| Better pre-clinical models | Needed to study mechanisms of interactions between virus infections, allergen exposure, defective innate immunity and airway microbes in initiation, progression and exacerbation of asthma. |
| Human challenge models (allergen, virus, pollution) | Can permit early proof of concept and proof of mechanism in development of novel therapeutic approaches and enable identification of novel mechanisms of disease to lead to new therapeutic strategies. |
| Anti-viral therapies and vaccines | Needed for use in early life in studies on asthma prevention and for prevention and therapy of asthma exacerbations. |
| Pre-clinical and clinical models of disease | Needed to better understand mechanisms of neuronal dysfunction, airway remodelling, etc. in progression and severity of asthma. Pre-clinical models should include development of models in and reagents for guinea pigs, rats, rabbits and dogs as well as mice. |
| Population-based birth cohort studies | Needed to integrate genetic and epigenetic host factors with studies of virus infections, allergens and other environmental exposures and gut and airway microbes, with studies of host innate and acquired immune reactivity versus tolerance with systems biologic analytic methodologies, to understand mechanisms of asthma onset. |
| Clinic/community based studies of paediatric and adult asthmatics | Needed to investigate disease mechanisms and to validate mechanistic findings from pre-clinical models in the human setting. |
| Clinical trials | Needed to investigate efficacy and mechanisms of injection and sublingual immunotherapy, and of novel asthma therapies. |
NGS: next generation sequencing; eQTL: expression quantitative trait loci; GWAS: genome wide association studies; SNP: single nucleotide polymorphism; BAL: bronchoalveolar lavage.