Hidden biological switches that change a person's disease risk
Official title: Master regulators of unexplained variation in disease risk
Funded at Van Andel Research Institute · NIH-11194994 · Data updated 2026-11-12
Researchers are looking for internal molecular switches that make disease risk vary between people so care can be more tailored to each person.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Van Andel Research Institute NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Grand Rapids, United States) |
| Project start | September 22, 2021 |
| Project end | June 30, 2026 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $1,928,796 |
| NIH project number | 5R01HG012444-05 |
| Project ID | NIH-11194994 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal participants would be people willing to share health data or biological samples, especially those with conditions that show unexplained differences between similar patients.
✕Less likely to help
People seeking immediate new treatments are unlikely to benefit directly because this is primarily laboratory and analytic research focused on underlying mechanisms.
What this research studies
They will search for molecular circuits that control how much traits and disease risk differ between individuals. The team will combine lab experiments in cells and animal models with computational analysis of genetic and molecular data to find these “master regulators.” By measuring variability as a trait itself, they aim to link specific regulators to differences in disease potential. The work mixes experimental biology and data science to build a foundation for predicting who might be more susceptible to certain conditions.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this could help predict an individual's disease potential beyond their genes and environment, enabling better-targeted prevention and treatments.
How similar studies have gone: Related basic research shows that molecular circuits can influence trait variability, but applying these ideas to explain human disease risk is still novel and exploratory.
Where this research is happening
-
Van Andel Research Institute
Grand Rapids, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Pospisilik, John Andrew — Van Andel Research Institute
- Study coordinator: Pospisilik, John Andrew
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.