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Elke Lea-Ann Ruth Peter Seppanen Kirkham Thornton Richmond BSc PhD PhD PhD MBBS MRCP(UK) FRACP Program Manager, Bacterial Respiratory Infectious
Jonathan Lea-Ann Tom Carapetis AM Kirkham Snelling AM MBBS FRACP FAFPHM PhD FAHMS PhD BMBS DTMH GDipClinEpid PhD FRACP Executive Director; Co-Head,
Co-head, Bacterial Respiratory Infectious Disease Group (BRIDG)
Ruth Peter Thornton Richmond PhD MBBS MRCP(UK) FRACP Co-head, Bacterial Respiratory Infectious Disease Group (BRIDG) Head, Vaccine Trials Group
Ruth Peter Thornton Richmond PhD MBBS MRCP(UK) FRACP Co-head, Bacterial Respiratory Infectious Disease Group (BRIDG) Head, Vaccine Trials Group
Children in low-mid income countries, and First Nations children in high-income countries, experience disproportionately high rates of Streptococcus pneumoniae and Haemophilus influenzae infections and diseases including pneumonia and otitis media.
Chronic wet cough for longer than 4 weeks is a hallmark of chronic suppurative lung diseases, including protracted bacterial bronchitis, and bronchiectasis in children. Severe lower respiratory infection early in life is a major risk factor of PBB and paediatric bronchiectasis.
One third of children require repeat ventilation tube insertion (VTI) for otitis media. Disease recurrence is associated with persistent middle ear bacterial biofilms. With demonstration that Dornase alfa (a DNase) disrupts middle ear effusion biofilms ex vivo, we identified potential for this as an anti-biofilm therapy to prevent repeat VTI. First, safety and tolerability needed to be measured.
Otitis media (OM) is one of the most common infections in young children, arising from bacterial and/or viral infection of the middle ear. Globally, Streptococcus pneumoniae and non-typeable Haemophilus influenzae (NTHi) are the predominant bacterial otopathogens. Importantly, common upper respiratory viruses are increasingly recognized contributors to the polymicrobial pathogenesis of OM.
The Bacterial Respiratory Infectious Disease Group (BRIDG) has a major focus ear and lung disease involving Streptococcus pneumoniae and Haemophilus influenzae.