Chris Brightling is Professor of Respiratory Medicine at the University of Leicester and Chair of the NIHR Respiratory Translational Research Collaboration. He has pioneered the development of biomarkers to phenotype airways disease, translated mechanistic insights into clinical trials, and implemented these findings into clinical practice. He was the first to demonstrate the clinical utility of measuring airway inflammation in the management of asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and to identify non-asthmatic eosinophilic bronchitis, as a common cause of chronic cough. His research has impacted upon international clinical guidelines and he has supported career progression of his clinical fellows into senior academic posts.