Kurtis Budden

Dr. Kurtis Budden is a Post Doctoral Researcher at the University of Newcastle, affiliated with the School of Biomedical Sciences and Pharmacy and the Priority Research Centre for Healthy Lungs. His research focuses on the interplay between diet, metabolism, and the gastrointestinal microbiome in chronic lung diseases, particularly COPD and asthma.

Research Highlights:

• Investigates how microbial metabolites and dietary interventions (e.g., fiber, probiotics) modulate COPD pathogenesis.
• Explores the gut-lung axis and environmental exposures (e.g., bushfire particulates) in respiratory health.
• Conducts both fundamental and clinical research, including transcriptomic analyses and therapeutic target identification.

Key Trends in Publications: Recent work emphasizes microbiome transplantation, lipid metabolism, and epithelial barrier dysfunction in COPD and asthma-COPD overlap. Studies often integrate multi-omics approaches and preclinical models.

Scientific Awards:

• 2025 Best Presentation - COPD SIG (The Thoracic Society of Australia & New Zealand)
• 2024 Runner Up - Gut Top Paper
• 2022 TSANZ Past President's Scholarship
• 2020 Ann Woolcock Young Investigator Award

Grants: Leads and collaborates on grants totaling $994,588, including NHMRC Synergy Grants and funding from the Hunter Medical Research Institute for microbiome studies in COPD and cystic fibrosis.