1. "Predicting and characterising asthma exacerbations using a contactless respiratory night monitor". 

Available now under the Oxford- MRC DTP iCASE 20226 programme. See link

2. "Novel cardiorespiratory physiological techniques for improving phenotyping of respiratory diseases"

Available now under NDM DPhil Themes. See link.

Short Biography 

I am a Consultant Respiratory Physician at Oxford University Hospitals and a Senior Clinical Research Fellow in Respiratory Medicine at the Nuffield Department of Medicine.

I hold a degree in Medicine (MB BChir) from the University of Cambridge. After a period of speciality training in Addenbrooke’s and Papworth Hospital as a respiratory registrar, I came to Oxford in 2009 to study for a DPhil in Biomedical Basic Sciences (Physiology), funded by a Wellcome Trust Fellowship, supervised by Professor Sir Peter Ratcliffe and Professor Peter Robbins. Following my DPhil in 2013, I continued my academic and clinical training at Oxford, as a NIHR academic clinical lecturer, which I completed in 2018.

Research Interests and current projects:

My research interests are in integrative cardiorespiratory physiology, type-2 airways inflammation and airways diseases. 

The overarching aim of my work is to "Predict & Prevent" respiratory disease (airways diseases such asthma and COPD): bring disease detection upstream, predict who is at risk and intervene to prevent airway remodelling and progressive lung damage.

I lead translational research on physiological phenotyping of airways diseases using novel non-invasive physiological techniques, such as Computed Cardiopulmonography (CCP), aiming to improve early disease detection, more accurately assess disease progression or treatment response and identify novel treatable traits for better targeting of treatments.  CCP consists of a novel technology, the Molecular Flow Sensor (developed by Professor Peter Robbins' & Prof Grant Ritchie's groups in DPAG & Chemistry) that accurately measures respired gases with unprecedented precision, coupled with a new computational cardiopulmonary model. We are using CCP to quantify lung inhomogeneity (unevemness) to phenotype and endotype airways diseases in combination with other biomarkers of disease in blood, sputum, breath. We have shown that a novel measure of inhomogeneity (uneveness) in lung ventilation, termed sigma-CL, is very sensitive in picking up early changes in the small-airways of the lungs, where disease typically begins.

Additionally, I am particularly interested in the role of type-2 inflammation as a driver of progressive respiratory morbidity, and whether early disease detection and intervention (with type-2 targeted therapies) can alter this trajectory.

I supervise DPhil students, post-doctoral researchers and clinical research nurses on a variety of clinical research, physiology and basic science projects, and also serve as local Principal Investigator on several clinical trials (RCT)s.

Current research projects:

1. TREETOP study: This project, funded by Asthma+Lung UK, evaluates CCP as a novel sensitive lung test for the early detection of COPD in people at high risk through tobacco smoking, but who currently have no respiratory diagnosis and normal spirometry. (Post-doctoral Research Scientist: Dr Nick Smith)

2. Estimation of NO depth production in the airways: Using a novel rapid exhaled NO sensor (developed by Grant Ritchie and Lorenzo Petralia in Chemistry) we are assessing relationships between depth of NO production (estimated with a new computational approach: FeNO wall paper) in the lung, and clinical phenotypic characteristics and treatment effects in patients with asthma (DPhil student: Haopeng Xu).

3. Type-2 airway inflammation as a driver of progressive respiratory morbidity: A Predict and Prevent Approach in Obstructive Airways Disease (DPhil student: Mia Cokljat). 

I am always happy to discuss research projects with prospective DPhil or Masters students.