OnAir Winter 2016

Dr Svetlana Baltic, Senior Scientist,
Molecular Genetics Unit at Harry
Perkins Institute of Medical Research
and MASAC member
A LOCAL RESEARCH BREAKTHROUGH
AFWA CONTRIBUTING TO LOCAL RESEARCH
Dr Svetlana Baltic was awarded a Project Grant
of $26,500 from Asthma Foundation WA (AFWA),
as part of the research grants announced during
National Asthma Week in September 2013, and
the final report from her research has recently
been published.
Dr Baltic’s research was entitled “Aberrant
alternative splicing defines the severity of
asthma.”
Dr Baltic explains, “We have always known that
asthma had a link to the immune system, but until
now, researchers haven’t understood exactly why the
genes involved in the immune system act differently in
people with asthma. Every human cell contains a full
range of human genes. But those genes are expressed
in different ways – or have different variations –
depending on the type of cell.”
The gene variants are produced by a process called
“alternative splicing”. Alternatively spliced genes are a
normal phenomenon – around 95% of all human genes
are alternatively spliced. But sometimes in disease, the
expression of these variations is abnormal, and the cells
don’t function as they should.
Dr Baltic noted, “in our studies so far, we have shown
that there are different variants of genes expressed in
people with asthma compared with people without
asthma. This difference also determines whether a
person has mild or severe asthma.”
Dr Baltic continued, “We have also discovered that
variants within two specific genes, known as SETD7
and KDM6A can influence the function of the whole
immune system, affecting hundreds of genes. This
means that using gene therapy, we can now correct
the expression of these variants, and actually change
the expression of many of the genes that affect the
function of the immune system. This could make a
person with asthma’s condition less severe, or maybe
cure their asthma all together.”
This discovery marks the beginning of exciting new work
on these gene variants. Dr Baltic’s research suggests
that we need to understand the mechanisms of what
regulates the ‘alternative splicing’ and expression of
specific splice variants. This potentially means new
treatments for people with asthma could be on the
horizon.
AFWA CEO David Johnson said, “Dr Baltic has
recently joined AFWA’s Medical and Scientific Advisory
Committee (MASAC) which is made up of clinicians,
researchers and physicians who are all working at the
forefront of respiratory research. We look forward to
Dr Baltic’s input and experience to AFWA’s ongoing
research funding and her gene research outcomes is
very positive for asthmatics.”
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