Ravinder Kaur, Ph.D.

Meet the Researcher

Dr. Kaur is also the recipient of the George A. Gates Research Award, presented annually in perpetuity to an outstanding Emerging Research Awardee.

The Research

Rochester General Hospital Research Institute
Differential Virulence gene expression of S. pneumoniae and Haemophilus influenzae in children with Acute Otitis Media & modulation of innate immune responses

Middle ear infections are the most common infectious disease among children leading to the use of antibiotics. Middle ear infections are typically followed by 4-12 weeks of middle ear effusion during which time children have diminished hearing leading to temporary delayed speech and language development. In developing countries, permanent hearing loss is not uncommon. Non-typeable Haemophilus influenzae (NTHi) and Streptococcus pneumoniae (Spn) are the two main bacteria that cause middle ear infections and are the target for new vaccine development. In the funded research, expression of various vaccine candidate proteins of NTHi and Spn in the nose (where middle ear infections start) and in the middle ear (where infections cause hearing loss) will be compared. Gene expression of the studied NTHi and Spn vaccine targets might be modulated by innate immunity of the host during disease progression and this too will be studied.

Research area: Middle Ear

Long-term goal of research: To develop a vaccine to prevent middle ear infections, thereby reducing hearing loss from this common childhood infection. Towards this goal here we will evaluate several vaccine candidates of the most common causes of middle ear infections to determine whether immunity induced by vaccination will be effective to rid the child of the bacteria when they reside in the nose and/or when they gain entry to the middle ear. We will also study how the gene expression of the studied vaccine targets might be influenced by the child’s immunity system.

Ravinder Kaur, Ph.D. is a Research Scientist at the Rochester General Hospital Research Institute. Kaur’s research focuses on the pathogenesis of middle ear infections and immune response of children to those infections with a goal of facilitating a vaccine to prevent hearing loss.