In this session from Heidelberg MPS Day, Yuncheng Man, PhD, discusses how he used a microfluidic Alveolus Lung-Chip to study the impact of macrophages on influenza H3N2 infection. The presence of macrophages reduced viral levels but increased inflammation and tissue damage. This included higher levels of inflammatory signals, immune cell recruitment, and cell death, leading to weakened lung tissue barriers. The inflammation was partly driven by pyroptosis (a form of inflammatory cell death) in macrophages, linked to the release of IL-1β. Blocking pyroptosis reduced lung damage, highlighting potential therapeutic targets for conditions like viral pneumonia and acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS).
