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Project

Targeting Immunothrombosis in Staphylococcus Aureus Infections and Endocarditis

Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) is amongst the deadliest infectious pathogens. Its increasing antibiotic resistance has urged the WHO to proclaim it as a top research priority. In contrast to other infections, infective endocarditis (IE) remains highly fatal despite advances in clinical care. With an increasing incidence and an unacceptably high mortality (up to 40%), there is an urgent need to understand how the vegetation, the central lesion of IE, develops. It is known that IE is the result of an interaction of the host coagulation, immune system, and bacterial factors. However, several methodological barriers have hindered the detailed understanding of central concepts, sorely needed to improve outcomes.
Our group has been working for almost ten years to combine those fields of expertise, developing innovative in vitro and in vivo models, and establishing collaborations. The current project builds on the previous work to use these novel models in looking at actionable factors in S. aureus IE pathogenesis, opening up new ways to treat this highly fatal disease. The expertise of the applicants on translational research with S. aureus has also resulted in their coordinating role in COVID-19 translational research.

Date:1 Jan 2021 →  Today
Keywords:Staphylococcus aureus, antibiotic resistance, infective endocarditis (IE), Immunothrombosis
Disciplines:Infectious diseases, Bacteriology, Vascular diseases, Cardiology, Innate immunity