Ross Vlahos
RMIT University, Australia
Title: Novel pharmacological strategies for the treatment of COPD and its comorbidities
Biography
Biography: Ross Vlahos
Abstract
Statement of the Problem: Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are a family of highly reactive molecules that are produced by a variety of cell types in the lung in response to chemical and physical agents in the environment. It is well known that ROS are critical in host defence as they kill invading pathogens, but that their excessive accumulation in the lung results in oxidative damage. Oxidative stress, which is defined as the persistent overproduction of ROS that overwhelms endogenous antioxidant defence systems, has been implicated in both acute (e.g respiratory virus infections, exacerbations of asthma and COPD) and chronic (e.g. COPD) lung diseases.
Aims and Methods: The purpose of this study is to determine whether inhibiting oxidative stress and ROS production may be a novel way to treat acute and chronic lung diseases using clinically relevant models of lung disease.
Findings: We have shown that targeting oxidative stress with the Nox2 oxidase inhibitors and ROS scavengers, apocynin and ebselen can ameliorate influenza A virus (IAV)-induced lung inflammation and pathology, cigarette smoke-induced lung inflammation and acute exacerbations of COPD (AECOPD). In addition, we have found that treating mice with apocynin reduced cigarette smoke-induced skeletal muscle wasting in mice suggesting that this strategy can be useful in treating comorbidities associated with COPD.
Conclusion & Significance: Targeting oxidative stress may be a novel strategy to treat both acute and chronic lung diseases.