Penn researchers identify missing link for fighting viral pneumonia

A shortage of a specific cytokine leads to severe lung disease following pneumonia infection Viral infections that occur in a patient’s lungs are a significant cause of hospitalization and death among children and the elderly. According to the Centers for Disease Control, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) causes about 60,000 hospitalizations of children aged 0 to four, and nearly 200,000 hospitalizations and 14,000 deaths among adults 65 and older. However, there are virtually no vaccines or treatments for these infections. In a study published online ahead of print in PLoS Pathogens, researchers from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania and the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine found evidence that the cytokine, Interleukin 27 (IL-27), may be the key to fighting and treating these infections. Working with a mouse-model of parainfluenza virus infection, Sendai virus, which causes similar symptoms and patterns of tissue damage to RSV, researchers found...