As of April 2020[update], studies and trials are underway that examine the possible benefits of nitric oxide in the treatment of COVID‑19.[90][91][92][93] This research is based on the fact that nitric oxide was investigated as an experimental therapy for SARS.[94] Brian Strickland, MD, a fellow in Wilderness Medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital who studies "acute respiratory distress" in high altitudes, is applying this research towards COVID‑19.[95][96] He is involved in clinical trials which apply the use of inhaled nitric oxide as a treatment for COVID‑19.[97] This approach was inspired by the work of Associate Professor of Emergency Medicine at the Harvard Medical School N. Stuart Harris, who has been studying the effects of altitude sickness on mountain climbers, such as those who climb Mount Everest. Harris noticed that the consequences of high level altitude sickness on the human body mirrored COVID‑19's dysfunctional impact on the lungs. His focus on nitric oxide comes from its role in being able to breathe in high altitudes.[95][98] According to WCVB-TV, similar trials are being conducted at Tufts Medical Center.[99] Other studies speculate that replacing mouth breathing (which decimates NO) with nasal breathing (which increases NO)[11][12][13][14] is a "lifestyle change" that "may also help to reduce SARS-CoV-2 viral load and symptoms of COVID‑19 pneumonia by promoting more efficient antiviral defense mechanisms in the respiratory tract."[100]