How immune cells and metabolism respond to drug-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae in the lungs
Official title: Understanding the immunometabolic response to Klebsiella pneumonia infection
Funded at Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences · NIH-11362212 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project looks at how carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae in the lungs changes metabolism and immune cells in ways that may let the bacteria persist.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Newark, UNITED STATES) |
| Project start | April 1, 2024 |
| Project end | March 31, 2027 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $248,999 |
| NIH project number | 5R00HL157550-05 |
| Project ID | NIH-11362212 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal candidates would be people with or at high risk for pulmonary infections caused by carbapenem-resistant K. pneumoniae, such as ventilator-associated pneumonia patients or those with recent confirmed ST258 infection.
✕Less likely to help
People with non-Klebsiella bacterial infections, mild outpatient respiratory infections, or infections from hypervirulent K. pneumoniae strains may not directly benefit from this project.
What this research studies
Researchers will focus on carbapenem-resistant K. pneumoniae (ST258) that cause serious lung infections, studying how the bacteria change local nutrient use and cellular metabolism. They will measure glucose, glutamine, and fatty acid pathways and how these shifts drive immune cells, especially monocytes, toward an immunosuppressive state. Work will combine laboratory models and analyses of infection samples to track metabolic signals, oxidative phosphorylation, and reactive oxygen species linked to immune suppression. The team aims to link these metabolic changes to the failure to clear chronic or ventilator-associated lung infections.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could point to new host-directed treatments that restore immune function and help clear drug-resistant K. pneumoniae lung infections.
How similar studies have gone: Related approaches targeting immune cell metabolism have shown promise in cancer and some infections, but applying immunometabolic targeting to drug-resistant K. pneumoniae lung infections is relatively new.
Where this research is happening
-
Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences
Newark, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Wong Fok Lung, Tania — Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences
- Study coordinator: Wong Fok Lung, Tania
Related research
Other NIH-funded projects on the same topics.
-
Coordinating ARDS, Pneumonia, and Sepsis research to improve care
A national coordinating center helps researchers studying ARDS and related infections work together more efficiently to learn what helps patients recover.
-
Endothelial inflammation memory after sepsis and pneumonia
A scientist is studying how blood vessel cells “remember” sepsis and why survivors get worse when they catch pneumonia, with the goal of finding better ways to reduce organ damage.
-
Bacterial Biofilm Therapy with a Human Antibody to Help Antibiotics Work Better
A human antibody drug is being studied to disrupt bacterial biofilms and help standard antibiotics clear infections, especially around implants and catheters, in adults.
-
A tissue slice model to test treatments for Pneumocystis pneumonia in people with HIV/AIDS
Researchers are creating a lung-slice model to study Pneumocystis jirovecii pneumonia and test potential treatments using tissue from infected, immunosuppressed mice to better predict what might help people with HIV/AIDS.
-
Measuring respiratory and gut bacteria to predict pneumonia treatment failure
A project to understand how bacterial load in the lungs and gut changes during and after antibiotics for hospital-acquired and ventilator-associated pneumonia, with the goal of predicting which patients might fail treatment.
-
Better tests and treatments for Pneumocystis (PCP) pneumonia
Developing more accurate tests and safer treatment options for people with weakened immune systems who get Pneumocystis pneumonia.
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.