Microbiome and Lung Disease: Not So Sterile Anymore!
A special issue of Microorganisms (ISSN 2076-2607). This special issue belongs to the section "Medical Microbiology".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 December 2022) | Viewed by 2408
Special Issue Editor
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Until recently, the lung was thought of as a sterile organ, protected from pathogens external to the body by the innate and adaptive immune system. When compromised, these defense systems allowed for the invasion of pathogens, leading to acute pneumonia. This paradigm had exceptions, of course. Risk factors such as mechanical ventilation, or genetic diseases including Cystic Fibrosis, increase the risk of bacterial and/or viral infection of the lower airways.
Our understanding of microbial–host interactions, especially in the airway, has evolved significantly over the last ten to fifteen years. We now understand that the lung is not the sterile environment it was originally thought to be. A complex interaction between resident, not just transient, microbes including bacteria, viruses and fungi helps in shaping respiratory function and immune tone. This respiratory microbiome contributes to defense against pathogenic microbes, supports the function of the epithelial barrier and can influence the function of innate and adaptive immune cells. Increasingly, modifications to the airway microbiome have been linked to the development of allergic airway diseases, chronic and frequent exacerbations and rapid decline of lung function.
Dr. Taylor Cohen
Guest Editor
Keywords
- microbiome
- respiratory disease
- immunology
- metabolome
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