For their investigations the team around Prof. Andreas Hocke and Prof. Stefan Hippenstiel used a specially developed model with human lung tissue with which essential characteristics of a lung inflammation can be simulated. The researchers analysed the interaction of viruses and bacteria with human lung vesicles in the first hours after start of infection and found differences to animal models.

Using their in vitro model consisting of human tissue they were able to confirm their assumption that the immune response to a viral infection hinders the combat agianst the parallel infection with bacteria. Reason is that during the defense against viruses the central inflammatory messenger interleukin-1 beta is blocked in certain pulmonary vesicles. Thus, a subsequent activation of the immune system against the pneumococci and possibly also cellular repair processes is not possible. Against this weakness they have successfully tested a thyrosine kinase inhibitor.

Since 2010, the German Research Foundation is supporting this kind of lung inflammation research with the collaborative research centre SFB-TR84.

Original Publication:
Johann Jensen, Jens C. Rückert, Stephan Eggeling, Dennis Fatykhova, Mario Tönnies, Torsten T. Bauer, Paul Schneider, Jens Neudecker, Maria Schimek, Achim D. Gruber, Norbert Suttorp, Stefan Hippenstiel, Andreas C. Hocke (2017): Tyk2 as a target for immune regulation in human viral / bacterial pneumonia. European Respiratory Journal 50: 1601953

Source:
http://www.bionity.com/de/news/164153/forscher-heben-immunblockade-gegen-bakterien-auf.html?WT.mc_id=ca0264
http://www.charite-inflab.de/hocke-lab/