Blood and immune cell markers to predict chronic graft‑versus‑host disease
Official title: Machine Learning to identify Biomarkers for Risk of Chronic Graft-Versus-Host Disease
Funded at Medical University of South Carolina · NIH-11304070 · Data updated 2026-11-12
Using machine learning on blood and immune cell tests, this project looks for early signs that children and adults who had bone marrow (allogeneic) transplants may develop chronic graft‑versus‑host disease.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Medical University of South Carolina NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Charleston, United States) |
| Project start | December 2, 2021 |
| Project end | November 30, 2026 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $820,542 |
| NIH project number | 5R01CA264921-05 |
| Project ID | NIH-11304070 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
People who have received an allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplant (children and adults) and are in the early post‑transplant period, especially around day +90 with available blood/PBMC samples, are the population this work focuses on.
✕Less likely to help
Patients who have not had allogeneic transplant, those well beyond the early post‑transplant window, or people with unrelated immune conditions would not be expected to benefit directly from this project.
What this research studies
Researchers will analyze already collected plasma and peripheral blood mononuclear cell (PBMC) samples from several multicenter transplant trials and a tissue bank to look for protein and immune‑cell patterns linked to future cGVHD. They will measure about 14 plasma proteins and dozens of cell markers (up to ~300 parameters in some patients) around day +90 after transplant and compare people who later developed cGVHD to those who did not. Machine learning methods will be used alongside traditional statistics to find combinations of markers that predict who is at higher risk. The work includes both adult and pediatric transplant patients drawn from a pooled cohort of roughly 1,300 participants with a focused PBMC/plasma subset of about 200 patients.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this could let doctors identify transplant patients at high risk for cGVHD earlier so they can increase monitoring or try preventive therapies.
How similar studies have gone: Previous studies have identified individual markers (for example ST2 and CXCL9) linked to cGVHD risk, but combining many proteins and cell markers with machine learning is a newer approach intended to improve prediction accuracy.
Where this research is happening
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Medical University of South Carolina
Charleston, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Paczesny, Sophie — Medical University of South Carolina
- Study coordinator: Paczesny, Sophie
Related research
Other NIH-funded projects on the same topics.
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Targeting early oral GVHD to improve mouth health after stem cell transplant
A study at UW–Madison will explore why some transplant patients develop painful oral GVHD and test ideas to prevent and lessen mouth-related problems.
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Microbiome-based therapy for treatment-refractory GVHD after stem cell transplant
A microbiome-based therapy is being developed to help people who have graft-versus-host disease that doesn’t respond to standard treatments after a stem cell transplant.
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Role of altered mitochondria in preventing GVHD after stem cell transplant
This NIH grant explores how damaged mitochondria released during pre-transplant conditioning may trigger graft-versus-host disease and tests ways to fix mitochondrial dynamics to prevent GVHD.
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Fecal transplant plus fiber to treat graft-versus-host disease after blood stem cell transplant
A study to see if giving fecal transplant along with dietary fiber helps gut health and reduces complications in patients who have received a stem cell transplant and developed graft-versus-host disease.
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Using medium-chain fatty acids and a fat-sensing receptor to treat chronic graft-versus-host disease
This project looks at whether changing medium‑chain fatty acids or blocking a fat sensor called GPR84 can help people with chronic graft‑versus‑host disease after a bone marrow/stem cell transplant.
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Microbiome-based oral therapy for gut GVHD after stem cell transplant
Researchers are testing an oral live Biotherapeutic Product to help the gut microbiome improve graft-versus-host disease after stem cell transplant patients.
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.