Respiratory tract infections are a major global health concern, accounting for high morbidity
and mortality, especially in young children and elderly individuals. Traditionally, highly …

The respiratory tract is a complex organ system that is responsible for the exchange of
oxygen and carbon dioxide. The human respiratory tract spans from the nostrils to the lung …

The revolution in microbiota research over the past decade has provided invaluable
knowledge about the function of the microbial species that inhabit the human body. It has …

An increasing body of evidence indicates the relevance of microbiota for pulmonary health
and disease. Independent investigations recently demonstrated that the lung harbors a …

The lung harbours a diverse array of microbes whose dynamic composition is influenced by
both host and environmental factors. Thus far, most studies have described the microbial …

Chronic respiratory diseases, including asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
(COPD) and cystic fibrosis (CF), are among the leading causes of mortality and morbidity …

The healthy lung has previously been considered to be a sterile organ because standard
microbiological culture techniques consistently yield negative results. However, culture …

The composition of the lung microbiome is increasingly well characterised, with changes in
microbial diversity or abundance observed in association with several chronic respiratory …

Until recently, the airways were thought to be sterile unless infected; however, a shift
towards molecular methods for the quantification and sequencing of bacterial DNA has …

Lung diseases caused by microbial infections affect hundreds of millions of children and
adults throughout the world. In Western populations, the treatment of lung infections is a …