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Full NameDr Ultan Power
Centre for Experimental Medicine
Queen's University Belfast
Webpage:qub.ac.uk
Email Address:Email hidden; Javascript is required.
- infectious disease and the immune system
- Other
host/virus interactions
- Paediatrics
- Pathology
- Public Health
- Geriatric Medicine
- Infectious diseases
- Immunology
- Neonatology
- Respiratory Medicine
My research focuses on 2 major themes:
1. The role of airway epithelium in respiratory virus pathogenesis.
The airway epithelium is the primary target for infection by respiratory viruses. These viruses are responsible for massive morbidity and mortality worldwide. Severe infections with e.g., respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), may lead to chronic lung diseases, such as asthma. Medical interventions to treat or prevent these infections are absent or extremely limited. Our understanding of the pathogenesis of respiratory viruses in humans is rudimentary. We have developed world-leading models of respiratory virus infection based on well-differentiated primary airway epithelial cells, which reproduce hallmarks of RSV disease in infants. We exploit these models to study respiratory virus/host interactions to help identify host factors associated with virus pathogenesis, biomarkers of severe disease and/or targets for therapeutic intervention. (see, doi: 10.1073/pnas.1110203109)
2. Exploitation of Sendai virus (SeV) as a vaccine vector.
SeV is a rodent respiratory virus with huge potential as a vaccine vector. Our current expertise allows us to manipulate the SeV genome to facilitate the expression of vaccine antigens from other viruses. We are currently developing SeV-based vaccine programmes targeting respiratory viruses, such as human and bovine RSV and Nipah virus. (see doi: 10.1128/JVI.00798-10)