Mapping the cells that control gut health and inflammation
Official title: Spatial and temporal resolution to dissect cellular circuits controlling intestinal physiology, immunity, and inflammatory pathologies
Funded at Broad Institute, INC. · NIH-11136262 · Data updated 2026-11-12
Researchers will map where and when different gut cells are active to learn what goes wrong in celiac disease and other intestinal inflammations.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Broad Institute, INC. NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Cambridge, United States) |
| Project start | August 1, 2023 |
| Project end | May 31, 2028 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $2,017,193 |
| NIH project number | 5RC2DK135492-03 |
| Project ID | NIH-11136262 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal participants would be people with celiac disease or other intestinal inflammatory conditions (and healthy volunteers) who can provide gut biopsy samples or clinical data for tissue profiling.
✕Less likely to help
People seeking immediate therapeutic benefit or those without intestinal inflammation or unwilling to provide tissue samples are unlikely to receive direct benefit from this project.
What this research studies
This project will map gene and protein activity across human gut samples from healthy people and patients with celiac disease and other inflammatory gut conditions. The team will build computer tools to find disrupted cell-to-cell communication in inflamed tissue and compare patterns across diseases. In mice, they will track how inflammation and dietary stress change these cellular maps over time to capture the dynamics of injury and recovery. The combined human and mouse data aim to reveal common cellular mechanisms that could point to new diagnostic markers or treatment targets.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could reveal specific cell types and timing involved in gut inflammation, guiding new diagnostics or treatments for celiac disease and related disorders.
How similar studies have gone: Prior spatial-profiling studies have identified disease-linked cell changes in tissues, but combining high-resolution human maps with time-course mouse data and new computational tools is a newer and less-tested approach.
Where this research is happening
-
Broad Institute, INC.
Cambridge, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Xavier, Ramnik J — Broad Institute, INC.
- Study coordinator: Xavier, Ramnik J
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About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.