Investigation of the effects of polymicrobial infection on the induction of otitis media

中耳感染是一种非常普遍的儿科疾病，其特征是中耳炎症，是儿童最普遍的疾病。据报道，超过80%的儿童在3岁之前至少有一次急性中耳炎发作，近40%的儿童在7岁之前有6次以上的急性中耳炎发作。中耳感染的病因和发病机制是多因素的，受感染的患病率和软骨性的影响。预防由肺炎链球菌、不可分型的流感嗜血杆菌和卡他莫拉菌引起的细菌性中耳感染需要更好地了解这些细菌如何相互作用以及如何与宿主相互作用。目前小儿肺炎球菌疫苗预防中耳感染的效果不佳，这突出了我们知识上的这一不足，并将阻碍开发一种合适的多价疫苗来预防3种主要细菌病原体的感染。这项研究将调查细菌在感染期间如何在呼吸道中定植相互作用以及它们如何影响宿主。

Middle ear infection is a highly prevalent paediatric disease characterised by an inflammation of the middle ear and is the most prevalent illness of childhood. It is reported that greater than 80% of children have had at least one episode of acute otitis media by 3 years of age and almost 40% of children have more than 6 episodes by age 7 years. The cause and pathogenesis of middle ear infection are multifactorial and influence of prevalence and chonicity of the infections. Prevention of bacterial middle ear infection caused by Streptococcus pneumoniae, nontypeable Haemophilus influenzae and Moraxella catarrhalis requires a much better knowledge of how these bacteria interact with each other and with the host. The poor efficacy of the current pneumococcal paediatric vaccine for preventing middle ear infections highlights this deficiency in our knowledge and will impede the development of a suitable multvalent vaccine to prevent infection by the 3 major bacterial pathogens. This study will investigate how the bacteria colonising the respiratory tract interact during infection and how they affect the host.