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Research

Early childhood wheeze is a major risk factor for asthma. However, not all children who wheeze will develop the disease. The airway epithelium has been shown to be involved in asthma pathogenesis. Despite this, the airway epithelium of children with acute wheeze remains poorly characterized.

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Respiratory infection and wheezing illness are leading causes of hospitalisation in childhood, placing a significant burden on families and healthcare systems. However, reliably distinguishing children at risk of developing persistent disease from those likely to outgrow their symptoms remains a clinical challenge. Earlier identification would allow clinicians to focus care and resources on those most likely to benefit from long-term management, while reducing anxiety and uncertainty about the future for families.

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Ingrid Pat Laing Holt BSc PhD PhD, DSc, FRCPath, FRCPI, FAA Head, Children's Respiratory Science Emeritus Honorary Researcher 6319 1828 Ingrid.laing@

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Investigators: Peter Le Souef Project description There have been almost no studies of the first illness caused by HIV infection. We have recruited

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Chinese immigrants living in Australia experience increased allergic conditions: asthma, eczema, hay fever and wheeze. Recently we reported diminished innate cytokine responses in long-term immigrants, potentially increasing their pathogenic viral load and microbial carriage. We hypothesise that a Western environment changes the nasal microbiome profile, and this altered profile may be associated with the development of allergic conditions. In this cross-sectional study, we aimed to examine the loading of viral and microbial respiratory pathogens in the upper airway.

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Children born preterm have impaired lung function and altered lung structure. However, there are conflicting reports on how preterm birth impacts aerobic exercise capacity in childhood. We aimed to investigate how neonatal history and a diagnosis of bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) impact the relationship between function and structure of the lung, and aerobic capacity in school-aged children born very preterm.

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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.

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The epithelium is integral to the protection of many different biological systems and for the maintenance of biochemical homeostasis. Emerging evidence suggests that particular children have epithelial vulnerabilities leading to dysregulated barrier function and integrity, that resultantly contributes to disease pathogenesis.

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Acute wheezing is one of the most common hospital presentations for young children. Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and rhinovirus (RV) species A, B and the more recently described species C are implicated in the majority of these presentations. However, the relative importance and age-specificities of these viruses have not been defined.

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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.