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Research

The twenty-first century has seen a fundamental shift in disease epidemiology with anthropogenic environmental change emerging as the likely dominant factor affecting the distribution and severity of current and future human disease. This is especially true of allergic diseases and asthma with their intimate relationship with the natural environment.

Research

Understanding of newborn immune ontogeny in the first week of life will enable age-appropriate strategies for safeguarding vulnerable newborns against infectious diseases. Here we conducted an observational study exploring the immunological profile of infants longitudinally throughout their first week of life. 

Research

Bronchiectasis is a worldwide chronic lung disorder where exacerbations are common. It affects people of all ages, but especially Indigenous populations in high-income nations. Despite being a major contributor to chronic lung disease, there are no licensed therapies for bronchiectasis and there remain relatively few randomised controlled trials (RCTs) conducted in children and adults.

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Chorioamnionitis is a common antecedent of preterm birth and induces inflammation and oxidative stress in the fetal lungs. Reducing inflammation and oxidative stress in the fetal lungs may improve respiratory outcomes in preterm infants. Creatine is an organic acid with known anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties.

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Acinetobacter baumannii is a common pathogen associated with hospital-acquired pneumonia showing increased resistance to carbapenem and colistin antibiotics nowadays. Infections with A. baumannii cause high patient fatalities due to their capability to evade current antimicrobial therapies, emphasizing the urgency of developing viable therapeutics to treat A. baumannii-associated pneumonia.

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Improvements in neonatal critical care have resulted in more people than ever reaching adulthood after being born prematurely. At the same time, it is becoming clearer that preterm birth can increase the risk of respiratory disease throughout a person’s lifetime. Awareness that a patient was born preterm can enable early specialist assessment and intervention when there is any concern about lung health. 

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Heart failure (HF) is the end stage of most cardiovascular diseases and remains a significant health problem globally. We aimed to assess whether patients with left ventricular ejection fraction ≤45% had alterations in both the gut microbiome profile and production of associated metabolites when compared to a healthy cohort.

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Given the rise of multidrug-resistant (MDR) Pseudomonas aeruginosa infections, alternative treatments are needed. Anti-pseudomonal phage therapy shows promise, but its clinical application is limited due to the development of resistance and a lack of biofilm penetration. 

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The European Respiratory Society Oscillometry Taskforce identified that clinical correlates of bronchodilator responses are needed to advance oscillometry in clinical practice. The understanding of bronchodilator-induced oscillometry changes in preterm lung disease is poor. Here we describe a comparison of bronchodilator assessments performed using oscillometry and spirometry in a population born very preterm and explore the relationship between bronchodilator-induced changes in respiratory function and clinical outcomes.

Research

Pulmonary bacterial infections present a significant health risk to those with chronic respiratory diseases including cystic fibrosis and chronic-obstructive pulmonary disease. With the emergence of antimicrobial resistance, novel therapeutics are desperately needed to combat the emergence of resistant superbugs.