Gut microbes and blood chemicals linked to pain after kidney transplant
Official title: The Gut Microbiome and Serum Metabolites as a Biological Mechanism Underlying Pain in Kidney Transplantation (Biome-KT)
Funded at University of Illinois at Chicago · NIH-11336389 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project looks at how changes in gut bacteria and blood metabolites relate to chronic pain in adults after a kidney transplant.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of Illinois at Chicago NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Chicago, UNITED STATES) |
| Project start | May 15, 2023 |
| Project end | February 29, 2028 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $666,762 |
| NIH project number | 5R01DK135574-04 |
| Project ID | NIH-11336389 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Adults (age 21 and older) who have received a kidney transplant and can provide stool and blood samples and complete follow-up visits are the ideal participants.
✕Less likely to help
People who have not had a kidney transplant, children, or anyone unable or unwilling to provide repeated stool or blood samples and questionnaire data are unlikely to benefit from participating.
What this research studies
As a kidney transplant recipient, you would provide stool samples, blood draws, and answers about your pain, diet, and stress at several visits after transplant. Researchers will sequence the gut microbiome and measure chemicals in the blood to see how their changes line up with pain symptoms over time. The study follows people repeatedly so it can track how switching off a renal diet, eating habits, and psychological stress might influence microbes, metabolites, and pain. The goal is to find patterns that point to practical ways to reduce pain through diet, stress management, or microbiome-targeted approaches.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could point to treatable biological pathways—like diet, stress, or the gut microbiome—that reduce chronic pain after kidney transplantation.
How similar studies have gone: Previous research links the gut microbiome and metabolites to chronic pain in other conditions, but applying this repeated-measures approach specifically to kidney transplant recipients is relatively new.
Where this research is happening
-
University of Illinois at Chicago
Chicago, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Lockwood, Mark — University of Illinois at Chicago
- Study coordinator: Lockwood, Mark
Related research
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Investigating how gut bacteria and blood chemicals affect pain after kidney transplants
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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.