Translational Breath Research for Clinical Diagnosis and Therapeutic Monitoring (Pablo Sinues, University of Basel)
Jan 21, 2021 from 05:00 PM to 06:00 PM
Online
Prof. Pablo Sinues, University Children’s Hospital Basel (UKBB), Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Basel, Switzerland
Exhaled breath is an under exploited body fluid, which contains valuable biochemical information at the metabolic level. Hence, it holds great potential as a non-invasive method to assist in clinical decision making. While there has been progress in making use of breath tests to guide clinical decision making, the full potential of exhaled breath analysis still remains to be exploited.
I will present a summary of the technical developments that allowed Secondary Electrospray Ionization-High Resolution Mass Spectrometry to become a reference analytical platform for real-time trace gas analysis. Bio-informatic tools developed in our lab unravel biochemical information encoded in the mass spectral fingerprints of our patients. Subsequently, I will illustrate how are we exploiting this technology in a clinical setting to address unmet clinical needs. For example, I will showcase how we use breath analysis to predict drug blood concentrations in epileptic patients, as well as risk estimates for drug therapy effects as well as side effects. Further examples of the potential of this technique include the diagnosis of infectious respiratory diseases, enabling the identification of the responsible pathogen within minutes. Ultimately, this work aims to improve diagnosis, to better phenotype complex pathophysiological processes, as well as to personalize therapy.
