Frontiers in Science Lead Article
Published on 30 Jan 2025
A summary of the lead article in a Q&A format, with infographics and a video.
A version of the lead article written for—and peer reviewed by—kids aged 8-15 years.
Sepsis, a complex and heterogeneous immune dysregulation syndrome triggered by infection, is a major under-recognized global cause of mortality and of pandemic-related deaths.
The multifaceted nature of sepsis requires systems immunology approaches such as comprehensive omics investigations and high-end bioinformatics analyses, including machine learning.
Systems immunology is beginning to transform sepsis care toward precision medicine approaches, including diagnostics to enable early detection and immune-directed therapies tailored for specific sepsis subtypes (endotypes) and stages in disease trajectories over time.
Advances in epigenetics could inform future therapies against long-term post-sepsis syndrome and long COVID.
Research and development toward precision sepsis care should be at the heart of pandemic mitigation planning to provide a pathogen-agnostic means to reduce mortality.
Join a complimentary virtual symposium on how systems immunology could revolutionize sepsis diagnosis and treatment.
Progress in sepsis care hinges on improved patient characterization through systems immunology, precision treatment approaches, innovative trial designs, and global collaboration of multiple stakeholders, asserts Prof Jean-Louis Vincent, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Belgium.
Artificial intelligence and machine learning could transform sepsis care, integrating patient phenotypes and endotypes to guide precision therapies and predict organ dysfunction, emphasize Prof R. Phillip Dellinger and Jason Bartock, Cooper Medical School and Cooper Medical School of Rowan University, USA.
Global health policies must prioritize investments in sepsis R&D as a cornerstone of pandemic preparedness and response, urge Dr Mariam Jashi, Global Sepsis Alliance, Georgia, and Prof Niranjan Kissoon, Global Sepsis Alliance and University of British Columbia, Canada.
Understanding the different types of immune dysregulation that cause sepsis will let us target treatments, lower future death tolls, and prevent lingering illness like long COVID-19.
In a featured article published in Frontiers in Science, Prof Bob Hancock (University of British Columbia, Vancouver) with researchers from leading Canadian institutions describe how a bioinformatic systems immunology approach can transform the diagnosis and treatment of sepsis, signifying a major step toward greater pandemic preparedness.
Mathematical modelling may hold the key to saving patients from sepsis, a deadly complication that causes about 20 per cent of all deaths worldwide.
Frontiers in Science published a Policy Outlook titled Investing in sepsis science for future pandemic preparedness, authored by Dr. Mariam Jashi and Prof. Niranjan ‘Tex’ Kissoon on behalf of the Global Sepsis Alliance.
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