Professor Wins Rising Star Award for Research Linking Respiratory Diseases to Neurological Issues.

The existence of a causal association between chronic respiratory diseases such as asthma and a reduction in the volume of white matter in the brain may lead to other neurological manifestations such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), multiple sclerosis (MS), and Parkinson's disease. This finding emerged from the research of Subhabrata Moitra, Assistant Professor at the Bagchi School of Public Health at Ahmedabad University, for which he also won the prestigious Rising Star Award from the XII International Workshop on Lung Health.
Professor Moitra highlights the possibility of using genome-wide association study databases to identify genetic components associated with both the exposure (adult-onset asthma) and the outcome (reduction in white matter). "Certain single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) are responsible for both adult-onset asthma and reduction in brain white matter. Through this study, we could disentangle a direct and causal link, indicating that adult-onset asthma is a risk factor for brain white matter reduction. This reduction is mostly associated with motor neuron disorders, which may lead to other neurological manifestations," said Professor Moitra.
The International Workshop on Lung Health honours two or three researchers with the Rising Star Award every year; however, most recipients are clinicians, making Professor Moitra one of the few basic scientists to receive this honour. A physiologist by training, Professor Moitra has an inherent interest in epidemiology. “There are not many people working on respiratory epidemiology in India. Hence, for early-career faculty and researchers, this type of award provides a lot of motivation, courage, energy, and enthusiasm to pursue research in this domain, and I think there are many opportunities as well," said Professor Moitra.