The Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care & Sleep Medicine would like to congratulate Dr. Raju Reddy for being a recipient of the 2018 CTSI Clinical Pilot Award. Dr. Reddy’s research interest is in the mechanism of lung injury and he will be investigating “Molecular Signatures in Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome: Role of Renin-Angiotensin System (RAS) Peptides as Biomarkers of Prognosis of Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome”.
Below outlines a summary of Dr. Reddy’s research:
Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS) accounts for 10% of all ICU admissions and 23% of all mechanically ventilated patients. Unfortunately, there are very limited treatment options for ARDS. Recently, the renin-angiotensin system has been implicated in the pathogenesis of ARDS in animal models. In brief, angiotensin I (Ang I) is converted to angiotensin II (Ang II) by angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE). Ang II promotes fibrosis and impairs lung function while treatment with Losartan (Ang II receptor blocker). Ang II is metabolized into angiotensin(1-7) [(A(1-7)] via angiotensin converting enzyme 2 (ACE2). Unlike Ang II, A(1-7) attenuates the inflammatory process and promotes wound repair. We believe that an imbalance between the pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory pathway leads to poor outcomes in ARDS. My research aims to investigate the role of renin-angiotensin system in the pathogenesis of ARDS in humans. Specifically, we will determine levels of peptides (Ang 1, Ang II, A(1-7), ACE and ACE2) and determine if the peptide levels correlate with clinical outcomes such as mortality, SOFA score and ICU and hospital length of stay.
