Bacterial gene activity in human tissues to link microbes and host health
Official title: Bacterial Metatranscriptomics from Human Tissues to Resolve Contributions of Host and Microbial Pathways to Health and Disease
Funded at California Institute of Technology · NIH-11434135 · Data updated 2026-11-12
A research project to map which genes are active in both human tissues and their resident bacteria to better understand conditions like Crohn’s disease.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | California Institute of Technology NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Pasadena, United States) |
| Project start | August 21, 2026 |
| Project end | June 30, 2030 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $661,126 |
| NIH project number | 1R01DK149061-01 |
| Project ID | NIH-11434135 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Patients with tissue-related inflammatory diseases, particularly those with perianal Crohn’s disease, who can provide tissue samples for analysis.
✕Less likely to help
Patients without access to tissue samples or those not meeting the study’s criteria may not directly benefit.
What this research studies
This project aims to develop and apply a groundbreaking method (T-BEAM) to measure gene expression from both human tissues and tissue-associated bacteria at the same time. By overcoming challenges with bacterial RNA stability and low abundance, the team will generate high-quality paired host-microbe gene expression data from patients. The work will focus on complex diseases such as perianal Crohn’s disease to uncover how microbes and the host immune system interact at the molecular level. Findings could reveal new targets for therapies that modulate both host responses and microbial activity.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, patients could benefit from new insights into how microbes influence disease and potential strategies to tailor treatments based on gene expression signals.
How similar studies have gone: Preliminary methods to study host and microbial gene expression separately have shown promise, but this project advances simultaneous measurement in human tissues.
Where this research is happening
-
California Institute of Technology
Pasadena, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Ismagilov, Rustem F — California Institute of Technology
- Study coordinator: Ismagilov, Rustem F
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.