Clinicn Investigator, Assc Prf Anesthesia, Critical Care and Pain Medicine, Mass General Research Institute

Reginald Jenney Associate Professor of Anaesthesia Harvard Medical School

Assistant Anesthetist Anesthesia, Critical Care and Pain Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital

Medical Director, Respiratory Care Anesthesia Center for Critical Care Research, Massachusetts General Hospital

MD University of Milan 1999

MD Universita Degli Studi Di Milano 1999

acute lung injury; acute respiratory distress syndrome; airway inflammation; critical care; mechanical ventilation; nitric oxide; pneumonia; ventilation; ventilator-associated pneumonia

Our research group is dedicated to translating innovative laboratory discoveries into preclinical large animal studies and first-in-human trials to improve the diagnosis, monitoring, and treatment of critically ill patients. Situated within the Department of Anesthesia, Critical Care and Pain Medicine at MGH, our work bridges the gap between foundational science and bedside applications. Our current efforts focus on:

• Investigating the antimicrobial and organ-protective properties of inhaled nitric oxide (iNO), including high-dose and low-dose applications, in settings such as severe pneumonia, acute hypoxemic respiratory failure, cardiopulmonary bypass, and chronic pulmonary hypertension.

• Developing prolonged and home-based iNO delivery strategies for patients with pulmonary hypertension and other chronic respiratory conditions.

• Testing high-dose iNO in short, repeated hospital sessions for the treatment of severe lung infections, with a focus on safety, methemoglobin kinetics, and clinical feasibility.

• Enhancing cardiopulmonary mechanical support using real-time physiological monitoring tools, such as electrical impedance tomography, esophageal manometry, and integrated heart-lung ultrasound.

• Advancing the prevention of ventilator-associated pneumonia and post-extubation complications through novel airway management strategies and devices.

• Investigating the biological impact of transfusion, hemolysis, and free heme on inflammation and endothelial dysfunction, especially in cardiac surgery and critical illness.

• Characterizing inflammatory responses and organ injury in surgical patients and in animal models of ischemia-reperfusion and pneumonia.

Our laboratory plays a central role in the mentorship and development of over 80 research fellows and students from around the world, many of whom have gone on to secure faculty appointments and competitive training positions. As Medical Director of Respiratory Care at MGH and affiliated hospitals, and Director of the Lung Rescue Team, I also lead the integration of bedside physiology into clinical decision-making to optimize outcomes in respiratory failure.

My early research career began at the National Institutes of Health (2000–2005), under the mentorship of Dr. Theodor Kolobow, where we developed innovative medical devices to reduce aspiration and ventilator-associated pneumonia. Since joining MGH, I’ve built a translational research program that spans from device development to multicenter trials in inhaled gas therapy, working in close collaboration with Dr. Warren Zapol, Dr. Robert Kacmarek, and international partners in biomedical engineering and critical care medicine.