A newly discovered regulator that controls gut inflammation
Official title: Defining a novel transcriptional regulator of intestinal health and inflammation
Funded at Univ of Massachusetts Med Sch Worcester · NIH-11477035 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This work looks at a newly found gene regulator that keeps immune cells in the gut from causing harmful inflammation, which could help people with inflammatory bowel conditions.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Univ of Massachusetts Med Sch Worcester NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Worcester, United States) |
| Project start | January 8, 2024 |
| Project end | March 31, 2029 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $249,000 |
| NIH project number | 4R00DK135923-03 |
| Project ID | NIH-11477035 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
People with inflammatory bowel disease, chronic intestinal inflammation, or those interested in contributing tissue or blood samples to gut-immune research would be most relevant to follow or engage with this work.
✕Less likely to help
Patients looking for an immediate new treatment or a clinical drug trial are unlikely to benefit directly because this is preclinical laboratory research rather than a treatment study.
What this research studies
Researchers will study a recently discovered transcription factor that calms a type of immune cell in the intestine called ILC3s and may limit gut inflammation. They will use laboratory experiments with cells and animal models, genetic approaches to turn the regulator on or off, and analyses of immune and stromal cells to see how it acts across different cell types. The team will determine how this regulator controls protective versus inflammatory responses in the gut and how its activity affects tissue health. Results may point to molecular targets for future therapies for conditions such as inflammatory bowel disease.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this research could reveal new molecular targets to reduce intestinal inflammation and guide development of future treatments for IBD and related disorders.
How similar studies have gone: Prior laboratory studies, including a 2022 Nature paper from the candidate's group, showed this regulator can restrain inflammatory ILC3 activity, so the proposal builds on promising preclinical findings.
Where this research is happening
-
Univ of Massachusetts Med Sch Worcester
Worcester, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Zhou, Wenqing — Univ of Massachusetts Med Sch Worcester
- Study coordinator: Zhou, Wenqing
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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.