Complex ecological approach to cystic fibrosis respiratory infections

Abstract

Cystic fibrosis (CF) is one of the most common genetic disorders; resulting in a wide variety of complications, including respiratory infections. Such infections are often ineffectively treated within the framework of a classical paradigm of the infectious process. However, little attention is paid to the unique microecological conditions that are formed in CF respiratory tract. This study aimed to exploring the microecological conditions and to finding out how they may influence the pathogenesis of CF infections. These conditions emerge under the influence of local disruptions in the respiratory functions; inflammatory processes, and complicated relations of the individual microorganisms between each other and between the human bodies as their ecological substrates. As a result, microorganisms that are usually safe for the healthy people become extremely dangerous for CF patients; having adapted to a new ecological niche and having got definite resource advantage, which is attributed to the respiratory tract tissue destruction. Additionally, it is still unknown; how do the anaerobic microbes contribute to CF infections, and whether they collaborate with the traditional CF pathogens or compete with them. In this article, we are analyzing CF respiratory infections from the ecological perspective and proposing in our opinion a more comprehensive picture of their pathogenesis.