PittPharmacy faculty member Kerry M. Empey, PharmD, PhD has received an R03 grant awarded by the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health & Human Development (NICHD), NIH.

The goal of this proposal is to determine if infant alveolar macrophages are responsible for the accumulation of2PittPharmacy_KerryEmpey_0098-e1370530514595-200x288
mucus and cellular debris and the mechanism by which IFNg enhances resolution of this debris.

Airway occlusion is a hallmark of severe infant respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) infection due to the accumulation of cellular debris and mucus and contributes to significant morbidity and mortality. Alveolar macrophages are largely responsible for clearing cellular debris and mucus, suggesting that alveolar macrophages may be impaired in infants with severe RSV infection.

IFNγ, is an anti-viral cytokine shown to correlate with reduced disease severity. However, it remains unclear its beneficial effects in RSV disease are related to reductions in mucus production or cellular debris.

Empey is an assistant professor in the pharmacy and therapeutics department at the School of Pharmacy.

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