In this section, we share respiratory research currently underway by researchers in New Zealand and overseas.


Digital lungs: Using models of lungs to personalise medicine

Kelly Burrowes Merryn Tawhai

Merryn Tawhai and Kelly Burrowes from the Auckland Bioengineering Institute are investigating using computer models of lungs to personalise medicine. Digital models are a very useful tool in both understanding the lungs of people with respiratory conditions and predicting how medical treatments could work. Read more.

How cell miscommunication could contribute to fibrosis

Katie Lowles Square

Katie Lowles is mid-way through her immunology PhD at The University of Manchester. She has spent three months interning at the Asthma and Respiratory Foundation as part of her doctorate programme. In this article she explains her research into the interactions between fibroblasts and macrophages and how their inappropriate communication may lead to collagen dysregulation. Read more.

Wellington Asthma Research Group: Hygiene Hypothesis and Healthy Homes

Professor Julian Crane is the director of the Wellington Asthma Research Group at the University of Otago. Julian leads a group of research scientists whose work focuses primarily on asthma and allergies, but also covers smoking cessation, eczema and other respiratory conditions, like bronchiolitis. Read more.