Dietary nudges that shape gut and liver immune guardians
Official title: Dietary environmental control of enteric T cell immunity
Funded at La Jolla Institute for Immunology · NIH-11434824 · Data updated 2026-11-12
A research project will explore how what you eat affects a special group of immune cells in the gut and liver that protect you from infections and cancer.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | La Jolla Institute for Immunology NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (La Jolla, United States) |
| Project start | September 11, 2026 |
| Project end | August 31, 2031 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $776,314 |
| NIH project number | 1R01AI201651-01 |
| Project ID | NIH-11434824 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal participants would include individuals with interests in mucosal immunity or patients undergoing nutrition studies, where translational insights could inform future interventions.
✕Less likely to help
People not affected by gut or liver mucosal immunity or those not participating in dietary or immunology research may see no direct benefit.
What this research studies
This study looks at tissue-resident memory CD8 T cells in the intestine and liver and how diets and feeding patterns influence their location, metabolism, and protective functions. Researchers will test different nutrition approaches—such as fasting, refueling after fasting, parenteral nutrition, and defined macronutrient diets—to see how they change TRM persistence, positioning, and activity. They will examine how nutrient delivery routes and timing shape the cells’ transcriptional states and their ability to defend against pathogens. The project uses animal and human-relevant models at the La Jolla Institute for Immunology to identify metabolic programs that drive TRM function in these tissues.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: Understanding these dietary effects could lead to nutrition strategies that strengthen mucosal immunity and improve protection against infections and related diseases.
How similar studies have gone: Prior work shows diet can influence immune cells, with emerging evidence that TRM metabolism is diet-sensitive, though this exact two-tissue model is novel.
Where this research is happening
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La Jolla Institute for Immunology
La Jolla, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Reina-Campos, Miguel — La Jolla Institute for Immunology
- Study coordinator: Reina-Campos, Miguel
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.