The pandemic arising from the emergence of SARS-CoV-2 has been a salutary reminder to society of our interdependence on each other within societies, our global connectivity and our environment. The global interactions upon which so much progress has been built, rendered us vulnerable to rapid viral spread. That said, it has truly been “the worst of times and the best of times”. Infectious diseases have been the catalyst to extraordinary advances in medicine throughout history – consider for example the work of Joseph Lister in the ‘1860s’. Herein, I shall reflect on key lessons learned in medicine as we have responded to the pandemic in the last two years. This will prompt a conversation around health care imperatives facing us in the next decade using immune and infectious diseases as exemplars of the changing face of medicine
Professor Iain McInnes is one of the leading figures in global research into rheumatoid and psoriatic arthritis. He has been widely published – and his work has been hugely influential in driving new approaches and treatments for inflammatory diseases.
Iain is Director of the Institute of Infection, Immunity and Inflammation at the University of Glasgow. He is an authority on the pathogenesis and treatment of inflammatory arthritis. His early studies identified the expression and functional importance of a number of cytokines in rheumatoid synovitis and have extended since to explore the pathways that drive inflammation in the skin and joints of people with psoriatic arthritis. Latterly he has developed a substantial programme investigating the mechanisms and treatment of common co-morbidities e.g. heart disease and lipid disorders, that afflict people with arthritis.
Professor McInnes has built an internationally recognised research programme that aims to understand the cellular and molecular pathways behind the development of inflammatory joint diseases. In particular, his research advances have provided a platform for major pharmaceutical companies to develop pre-clinical findings into clinical trials of innovative therapies.
Professor Iain McInnes was awarded the Sir James Black Prize Medal by the Royal Society of Edinburgh for his “outstanding contribution to the field of immunology”