This groundbreaking research will analyse spatially resolved host and viral transcripomics and proteomics to identify the molecular mechanisms behind the dysregulated immune response seen in children and young adults during historical influenza pandemics.

Research Objectives

Status

Current

Recruitment

Closed

Study location

The Wesley Research Institute, St Andrew’s War Memorial Hospital, The University of Queensland

Study type

Investigator Initiated

    Lead investigator    
            Professor John Fraser AO        

        Experienced investigator		
				Associate Professor Kirsty Short			

Technical title

Understanding the impact of Spanish Flu on Adult and Children lungs, cell-by-cell

About this research project

This project will spatially resolve the host and viral transcriptome of patients who died of influenza during the pandemics of the 20th century in order to identify the molecular mechanisms behind severe disease and death. This project will compare lung tissue taken from patients of different ages to determine why children and young adults are uniquely susceptible to pandemic influenza. The results will inform future pandemic preparedness as the paradigm of which ages are most at-risk during influenza pandemics is shifting. It will also inform on targeted therapies for immune modulation and regulation in children and young adults in the event of a future influenza pandemic.

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Cardiovascular & Critical Care

Tracing the Origins: Spanish Flu’s Genetic Footprint by Deep Spatial Tissue Analysis