Manipulating mast cells to modify the interferon and inflammatory responses to viral infection

Viral infections are a major cause of illness and death. This is especially true of respiratory viruses such as Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) which is a major cause of hospital admissions in young children. The devastating impact of such diseases have been further confirmed by the recent COVID-19 outbreak. In each of these diseases, some people respond effectively to infection with little damage to their airways or development of difficulty in breathing while others can develop problems due to inflammation and tissue damage in the lungs, leading to difficulties breathing due to bronchiolitis or pneumonia. Individuals with asthma are often most vulnerable to becoming seriously ill as a result of such infections. In this project we will be examining how to better control such damaging inflammatory responses by understanding how they are regulated and exploring potential new therapeutic targets. In order to complete this work we will focus on a resident immune cell found in the airways and other sites of infection, known as the mast cell. This cell initiates and controls early immune responses to infection and produces many factors that can enhance inflammation and tissue damage as well as factors that can regulate inflammation and combat viral infection. By learning more about these cells and how to control them, we aim to identify new treatments that will substantially reduce the lung damage and deaths caused by such respiratory infections.