Arwel Jones is a Research Fellow within the Respiratory Research@Alfred section of the Department of Immunology and Pathology in the Central Clinical School.

Arwel is best known for his research into the mechanisms and interventions for respiratory infections and lung disease, including randomised controlled trials on the effects of exercise on the immune system or lung disease and systematic reviews to evaluate existing treatments for lung disease.

He has made an impact in three distinct, but strongly linked areas, which are:

• exercise treatments to reduce hospitalisations in COPD;

• reducing physical inactivity in chronic lung disease;

• prevention of respiratory infections in endurance athletes.

Arwel's work has been recognised through funding from lung charities, conference awards from international respiratory societies and publications in leading respiratory and exercise science journals.

Arwel has recently been awarded a Lung Foundation Australia Boehringer Ingelheim Fellowship (2022-2024) entitled EXercise for Exacerbations and Rhinovirus Treatment (EXERT). This project, via a randomised waitlist controlled trial and mouse models, will determine whether exercise has anti-viral and anti-inflammatory effects in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

Arwel also has the role of Trial Coordinator for the HomeBase 2 trial funded by the Medical Research Future Fund (2019-2024) and led by Professor Anne Holland. This a cluster randomised trial evaluating the implementation of choice (home or centre-based) of pulmonary rehabilitation programs on hospitalisation in COPD.

Internal positions:

• Deputy Chair of the Central Clinical School Community and Researcher Engagement (CaRE) program
• Community Engagement Coordinator for the Central Clinical School Allied Health Translational Research Network