Investigating Inflammatory and Developmental Pathways Underlying Bronchopulmonary Dsyplasia

Bronchopulmonary Dysplasia (BPD) is a debilitating lung disease that affects premature infants. Due to the lack of a cure, novel treatment strategies are urgently required. The primary focus of this PhD thesis was to investigate inflammatory and developmental factors that contribute to the development of BPD. The Immune cell factor, granulocyte colony-stimulating factor was identified as a critical driver of severe lung pathology in BPD, while vascular endothelial growth factor-D, an understudied developmental factor, protected the infant lungs from structural and functional impairment. This research has identified two new disease targets, supporting efforts in therapeutic discovery for BPD treatment.