Overview

The Mehrad Lab focuses on lung injury, with an emphasis on lung immunology and innate immune responses in both infectious and non-infectious settings. Their research has examined host defense mechanisms in pneumonia caused by opportunistic molds, Gram-negative bacteria, and coronaviruses, including key findings on the roles of TNF, NK cells, and iron regulation in invasive aspergillosis. Additional work has identified mechanisms involving adenosine receptors, monocytes, and the iron-regulatory hormone hepcidin in bacterial pneumonia. In non-infectious lung injury, the lab has investigated fibrocytes as mediators of fibrosis through both animal models and translational human studies. The team has also developed a mechanistic computational model of lung injury that serves as a hypothesis-generating tool for ongoing experimental research.

Focus Areas

• Host defense in pneumonia
• ARDS
• Lung fibrogenesis
• Mechanistic computational model of lung disease