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The Children’s Respiratory Science group’s research has an emphasis on mechanisms of respiratory health in children including those that predict and underpin acute viral respiratory infections in children.
Asthma exacerbations in children are associated with respiratory viral infection and atopy, resulting in systemic immune activation and infiltration of immune cells into the airways. The gene networks driving the immune activation and subsequent migration of immune cells into the airways remains incompletely understood. Cellular and molecular profiling of PBMC was employed on paired samples obtained from atopic asthmatic children during acute virus-associated exacerbations and later during convalescence.
Wheezing and asthma exacerbations are leading causes of pediatric hospital admissions. Predicting which children will experience persistent exacerbations remains challenging. Prior research has identified immune endotypes in the nasal epithelium of children with acute asthma and wheezing, characterized by varying balances of interferons and inflammatory markers. Notably, children exhibiting low interferon responses coupled with high inflammation are at an increased risk for recurrent respiratory exacerbations.
The greatest threat to children’s health in the future is environmental change, including climate change. The Future Child Health project aims to quantify how current and future environmental changes affect child health.
Large numbers of children need emergency medical treatment each year for respiratory illnesses, particularly for wheezing and asthma.
An NHMRC grant exploring epigenetic factors that affect wheezing and asthma development.