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Research

Protection against neonatal respiratory viral infection via maternal treatment during pregnancy with the benign immune training agent OM-85

Incomplete maturation of immune regulatory functions at birth is antecedent to the heightened risk for severe respiratory infections during infancy. Our forerunner animal model studies demonstrated that maternal treatment with the microbial-derived immune training agent OM-85 during pregnancy promotes accelerated postnatal maturation of mechanisms that regulate inflammatory processes in the offspring airways.

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A method for the generation of large numbers of dendritic cells from CD34+ hematopoietic stem cells from cord blood

Neonatal dendritic cells generated form CD34+ cord blood progenitors have a higher inflammatory potential when exposed to viral than bacterial related stimuli

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Genome-wide association and HLA fine-mapping studies identify risk loci and genetic pathways underlying allergic rhinitis

GWAS analyses of allergic sensitization against inhalant allergens and nonallergic rhinitis suggested shared genetic mechanisms across rhinitis-related traits

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Characterization of “bystander” effects of the diphtheria-pertussis-tetanus (DTP) vaccine on the IgE system

We are seeking more detailed information on how the immune system of infants responds to the vaccine, with the aim of identifying which aspects of the immune r

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Maternal diet modulates the infant microbiome and intestinal Flt3L necessary for dendritic cell development and immunity to respiratory infection

Poor maternal diet during pregnancy is a risk factor for severe lower respiratory infections in the offspring, but the underlying mechanisms remain elusive. Here, we demonstrate that in mice a maternal low-fiber diet led to enhanced LRI severity in infants because of delayed plasmacytoid dendritic cell recruitment and perturbation of regulatory T cell expansion in the lungs.

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OPTIMUM study protocol: an adaptive randomised controlled trial of a mixed whole-cell/acellular pertussis vaccine schedule

Combination vaccines containing whole-cell pertussis antigens were phased out from the Australian national immunisation programme between 1997 and 1999 and replaced by the less reactogenic acellular pertussis (aP) antigens. In a large case-control study of Australian children born during the transition period, those with allergist diagnosed IgE-mediated food allergy were less likely to have received whole-cell vaccine in early infancy than matched population controls (OR: 0.77 (95% CI, 0.62 to 0.95)). We hypothesise that a single dose of whole-cell vaccine in early infancy is protective against IgE-mediated food allergy.

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Transplacental Innate Immune Training via Maternal Microbial Exposure: Role of XBP1-ERN1 Axis in Dendritic Cell Precursor Programming

We recently reported that offspring of mice treated during pregnancy with the microbial-derived immunomodulator OM-85 manifest striking resistance to allergic airways inflammation, and localized the potential treatment target to fetal conventional dendritic cell (cDC) progenitors. Here, we profile maternal OM-85 treatment-associated transcriptomic signatures in fetal bone marrow, and identify a series of immunometabolic pathways which provide essential metabolites for accelerated myelopoiesis.

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Oestrogen amplifies pre-existing atopy-associated Th2 bias in an experimental asthma model

The role of oestrogen in experimental atopic asthma, and guide future research on sex-related variations in atopic asthma susceptibility/intensity

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Mannitol challenge testing for asthma in a community cohort of young adults

We aimed to quantify the diagnostic utility of mannitol challenge testing for asthma in a community cohort and a symptomatic wheezing subset of this cohort.

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Tracking of Vitamin D status from childhood to early adulthood and its association with peak bone mass

There are moderate associations between vitamin D status measured in prepuberty, adolescence, and early adulthood