How aging immune signals and bile acids weaken T cell attack on liver cancer
Official title: Project 3: Chronic interferon and bile acid signaling as drivers of immunosuppression in age-related liver cancer
Funded at Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute · NIH-11160735 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This work looks at whether long-term interferon signals and buildup of bile acids in older adults make T cells less able to fight liver cancer.
Quick facts
| Grant type | P01 program project |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (La Jolla, United States) |
| Project start | September 15, 2021 |
| Project end | August 31, 2026 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $361,441 |
| NIH project number | 5P01AG073084-05 |
| Project ID | NIH-11160735 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
People with primary liver cancer, especially older adults (commonly over age 60) or patients whose tumors are not responding to current immune therapies, would be most relevant to this research.
✕Less likely to help
People without liver cancer, or whose disease is driven by causes unrelated to bile acid accumulation or interferon signaling, are unlikely to benefit directly from this project.
What this research studies
From a patient's point of view, the team is studying how age-related interferon signaling and extra bile acids in the liver change immune checkpoints and stop T cells from killing cancer cells. They will measure bile acid levels and immune markers that change with age, and use laboratory models to see how those changes affect T cells and responses to T cell–based therapies. The researchers aim to identify the specific signals that suppress immunity and test ways to block those signals to restore T cell function. Their goal is to find approaches that could make immunotherapies work better for older people with liver cancer.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could lead to treatments that boost T cell immunity or target bile acid and interferon pathways to improve immunotherapy response in older patients with liver cancer.
How similar studies have gone: Some prior studies have linked bile acids and chronic interferon signaling to immune suppression, but applying these findings specifically to improve liver cancer immunotherapy in older patients is relatively new.
Where this research is happening
-
Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute
La Jolla, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Kaech, Susan M — Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute
- Study coordinator: Kaech, Susan M
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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.