RI-MUHC Annual Report

RI-MUHC ANNUAL REPORT 2022

YEAR IN REVIEW

TRANSLATIONAL RESEARCH IN RESPIRATORY DISEASES PROGRAM (RESP)

RESEARCH HIGHLIGHTS

Protection against development of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

Dr. Carolyn Baglole’s research team found that the aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AHR) is a novel therapeutic target for chronic lung disease, and that its expression protects against chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. This protein is a new central player in the maintenance of lung health and may be a susceptibility factor for this deadly disease. (The Federation of American Societies of Experimental Biology (FASEB) Journal)

New mechanism of inflammation in muscular dystrophy

Dr. Basil Petrof’s lab is investigating new approaches in the treatment of Duchenne muscular dystrophy, a devastating and fatal genetic disorder that affects the breathing muscles of children and young adults. Their new study reveals how signals sent from damaged muscles to the bone marrow can induce long-lasting changes in immune cells that exacerbate harmful inflammation. “These findings could open the door to new therapies based on targeting of the epigenetic and metabolic mechanisms known to promote trained immunity, or by manipulation of innate immune system receptors,” says Dr. Petrof. (Nature Communications)

Dr. Carolyn Baglole and former research trainee Necola Guerrina, PhD, first author of their FASEB Journal publication (top, L-R); postdoctoral fellow Salyan Bhattarai, PhD, first author of a Nature Communications publication, and last author Dr. Basil J. Petrof (bottom, L-R) — Dr. Carolyn Baglole and former research trainee Necola Guerrina, PhD, first author of their *FASEB Journal* publication (top, L-R); postdoctoral fellow Salyan Bhattarai, PhD, first author of a *Nature Communications* publication, and last author Dr. Basil J. Petrof (bottom, L-R)

Regular screening for tuberculosis in Inuit communities

The Nunavik Regional Board of Health & Social Services has partnered with RI-MUHC researchers to assess the effects of its tuberculosis (TB)-screening initiatives. A study led by Dr. Kevin Schwartzman determined that regular community-wide screening for active and latent TB appears to be cost-effective in Inuit communities with high TB rates and is recommended to help reduce outbreaks. “We anticipate that community-based screening, supported by prompt and effective treatment of both active TB disease and latent infection, can play an important role in communities with the highest incidence,” the authors concluded. (Canadian Medical Association Journal)

Senior scientist Dr. Kevin Schwartzman and research assistant Aashna Uppal, MScPH, first author of their Canadian Medical Association Journal publication (L to R) — Senior scientist Dr. Kevin Schwartzman and research assistant Aashna Uppal, MScPH, first author of their *Canadian Medical Association Journal* publication (L to R)

Selected RESP Program news links

SELECTED PUBLICATIONS

Gamuchirai Tavaziva, Miriam Harris, Syed K Abidi, Coralie Geric, Marianne Breuninger, Keertan Dheda, Aliasgar Esmail, Monde Muyoyeta, Klaus Reither, Arman Majidulla, Aamir J Khan, Jonathon R Campbell, Pierre-Marie David, Claudia Denkinger, Cecily Miller, Ruvandhi Nathavitharana, Madhukar Pai, Andrea Benedetti, Faiz Ahmad Khan. Chest X-ray Analysis With Deep Learning-Based Software as a Triage Test for Pulmonary Tuberculosis: An Individual Patient Data Meta-Analysis of Diagnostic Accuracy. Clinical Infectious Diseases. 2022 Apr 28; 74(8):1390-1400. doi: 10.1093/cid/ciab639.

Hussein Traboulsi, Angela Rico de Souza, Benoit Allard, Zahraa Haidar, Mark Sorin, Vanessa Moarbes, Elizabeth D. Fixman, James G. Martin, David H. Eidelman, Carolyn J. Baglole. Differential Regulation of the Asthmatic Phenotype by the Aryl Hydrocarbon Receptor: Frontiers in Physiology 12, 2021. doi: 10.3389/fphys.2021.720196.

Eva Kaufmann, Nargis Khan, Kim A Tran, Antigona Ulndreaj, Erwan Pernet, Ghislaine Fontes, Andréanne Lupien, Patrice Desmeules, Fiona McIntosh, Amina Abow, Simone J C F M Moorlag, Priya Debisarun, Karen Mossman, Arinjay Banerjee, Danielle Karo-Atar, Mina Sadeghi, Samira Mubareka, Donald C Vinh, Irah L King, Clinton S Robbins, Marcel A Behr, Mihai G Netea, Philippe Joubert, Maziar Divangahi. BCG vaccination provides protection against IAV but not SARS-CoV-2. Cell Rep. 2022 Mar 8; 38(10):110502. doi: 10.1016/j.celrep.2022.110502.

Julia Chronopoulos, James G. Martin, Maziar Divangahi. Transplacental and Breast Milk Transfer of IgG1 Are Both Required for Prolonged Protection of Offspring Against Influenza A Infection: Frontiers in Immunology 13, 2022. doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2022.823207.

Tania Janaudis-Ferreira, Catherine M. Tansey, Sunita Mathur, Tom D. Blydt-Hansen, Julie Lamoureaux, Agnès Räkel, Nathalia Parente de Sousa Maia, André E. Bussières, Sara Ahmed, Jill T. Boruff. The effects of exercise training in adult solid organ transplant recipients: A systematic review and meta-analysis: Transplant International 34(5): 801-824, 2021. doi: 10.1111/tri.13848.

Jean Nicolas Westenberg, Basil J. Petrof, Francine Noel, David Zielinski, Evelyn Constantin, Maryam Oskoui, Marta Kaminska. Validation of home portable monitoring for the diagnosis of sleep-disordered breathing in adolescents and adults with neuromuscular disorders: Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine 17(8): 1579-1590, 2021. doi: 10.5664/jcsm.9254.

Michael J. O’Sullivan, Joyce Hojin Jang, Alice Panariti, Amina Bedrat, Gijs Ijpma, Bernardo Lemos, J. A. Park, Anne Marie Lauzon, James G. Martin. Airway Epithelial Cells Drive Airway Smooth Muscle Cell Phenotype Switching to the Proliferative and Pro-inflammatory Phenotype: Frontiers in Physiology 12, 2021. doi: 10.3389/fphys.2021.687654.

Olivia Oxlade, Andrea L. Benedetti, Mênonli Adjobimey, Hannah Alsdurf, Sévérin Yehouénou Anagonou, Victoria J. Cook, Dina A. Fisher, Greg J. Fox, Federica Fregonese, Panji Fortuna Hadisoemarto, Philip C. Hill, James Cameron Johnston, Faiz Ahmad Ahmad Khan. Effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of a health systems intervention for latent tuberculosis infection management (ACT4): a cluster-randomised trial: The Lancet Public Health 6(5): e272-e282, 2021. doi: 10.1016/S2468-2667(20)30261-9.

Motahareh Vameghestahbanati, Miranda Kirby, François Maltais, Dennis Jensen, Dany Doiron, Wan C Tan, Jean Bourbeau, Benjamin M Smith, CanCOLD Investigators. Dysanapsis and the Spirometric Response to Inhaled Bronchodilators. Am J Respir Crit Care Med. 2021 Oct 15; 204(8):997-1001. doi: 10.1164/rccm.202107-1574LE.

Adamo A. Donovan, Gregory Johnston, Michelle Moore, Dennis Jensen, Andrea L. Benedetti, Harvey O. Coxson, Stewart B. Gottfried, Basil J. Petrof, Jean C. Bourbeau, Benjamin M. Smith. Diaphragm morphology assessed by computed tomography in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: Annals of the American Thoracic Society 18(6): 955-962, 2021. doi: 10.1513/AnnalsATS.202007-865OC.

Carla Benea, Laura Rendon, Jesse Papenburg, Charles H. Frenette, Ahmed Imacoudene, Emily G. McDonald, Quoc Dinh Nguyen, Ewa Rajda, Estelle Tran, Motahareh Vameghestahbanati, Andrea L. Benedetti, Marcel A. Behr, Benjamin M. Smith. Evaluation of a home-based 7-day infection control strategy for healthcare workers following high-risk exposure to severe acute respiratory coronavirus virus 2 (SARS-CoV-2): A cohort study: Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology 42(10): 1194-1197, 2021. doi: 10.1017/ice.2020.1389.