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The respiratory health effects of acute in vivo diesel and biodiesel exhaust in a mouse model

Biodiesel, a renewable diesel fuel that can be created from almost any natural fat or oil, is promoted as a greener and healthier alternative to commercial mineral diesel without the supporting experimental data to back these claims. The aim of this research was to assess the health effects of acute exposure to two types of biodiesel exhaust, or mineral diesel exhaust or air as a control in mice.

Toxicity of different biodiesel exhausts in primary human airway epithelial cells grown at air-liquid interface

Biodiesel is created through the transesterification of fats/oils and its usage is increasing worldwide as global warming concerns increase. Biodiesel fuel properties change depending on the feedstock used to create it.

Growth of the airway smooth muscle layer from late gestation to childhood is mediated initially by hypertrophy and subsequently hyperplasia

The airway smooth muscle (ASM) layer thickens during development. Identifying the mechanism(s) for normal structural maturation of the ASM reveals pathways susceptible to disease processes. This study characterized thickening of the ASM layer from foetal life to childhood and elucidated the underlying mechanism in terms of hypertrophy, hyperplasia and extracellular matrix (ECM) deposition.

Azithromycin inhibits mucin secretion, mucous metaplasia, airway inflammation, and airways hyperresponsiveness in mice exposed to house dust mite extract

Excessive production, secretion, and retention of abnormal mucus is a pathological feature of many obstructive airways diseases including asthma. Azithromycin is an antibiotic that also possesses immunomodulatory and mucoregulatory activities, which may contribute to the clinical effectiveness of azithromycin in asthma.

National E-cigarette Monitoring and Evidence Consortium: Supporting informed research, policy and practice in Australia

Alexander Larcombe BScEnv (Hons) PhD Honorary Research Fellow Honorary Research Fellow Associate Professor Alexander Larcombe began work at The Kids

Directing immune development to curb sky-rocketing disease

Once upon a time it was infectious diseases like polio, measles or tuberculosis that most worried parents. With these threats now largely under control, parents face a new challenge – sky-rocketing rates of non-infectious diseases such as asthma, allergies and autism.

Australian researchers join international project to curb unhealthy lifetime trajectories

Australian researchers join global effort to better understand how events during pregnancy and childhood influence the development of disease later in life.

Chemical analysis of new and “aged” e-liquids: Development of a rapid toxicological screening approach

Alexander Larcombe BScEnv (Hons) PhD Honorary Research Fellow Honorary Research Fellow Associate Professor Alexander Larcombe began work at The Kids

Computational fluid-particle dynamic and pharmacokinetic assessment of electronic cigarette aerosols for improved understanding of their potential to impact health

This project will use computational methods to assess the deposition of e-cigarette aerosols in the lungs, and the distribution of chemicals within e-cigarette aerosols throughout the body.

Investigating the effects of macrolides on excessive synthesis and secretion of airway mucins using novel ex vivo and in vivo approaches

Alexander Larcombe BScEnv (Hons) PhD Honorary Research Fellow Honorary Research Fellow Associate Professor Alexander Larcombe began work at The Kids