How the body boosts blood cell production during stress and disease

Emergency Myelopoiesis in the Control of Blood Production

NIH-funded research Columbia University Health Sciences · NIH-11311847

This project looks at how bone marrow switches into an emergency mode to rapidly make myeloid blood cells during infections, chronic inflammation, aging, and blood cancers.

Quick facts

Grant typeNIH-funded research
Study typeNIH-funded research
Funding institutionColumbia University Health Sciences NIH-funded
Lab location1 site (New York, United States)
Project IDNIH-11311847 on NIH RePORTER

What this research studies

From my perspective as a patient, the team will study how stem and progenitor cells in bone marrow change their gene activity, metabolism, and behavior when the body demands lots of immune cells quickly. They will use laboratory models and a new “bone marrow‑on‑chip” platform to mimic the bone marrow environment and see how niche signals drive emergency myelopoiesis. The researchers will also connect these emergency pathways to trained immunity, the variety of myeloid cell types made, and how tumors create suppressive immune environments. Results will come from molecular analyses of cells and controlled lab systems rather than testing a new drug in patients.

Who could benefit from this research

Good fit: People with blood cancers, chronic inflammatory conditions, age‑related immune changes, or those willing to donate blood or bone marrow samples would be most relevant to this research.

Not a fit: Patients seeking an immediate new therapy would likely not benefit directly, since this is laboratory‑focused research rather than a treatment trial.

Why it matters

Potential benefit: If successful, this work could reveal targets to prevent harmful overproduction of inflammatory or immune‑suppressing myeloid cells and lead to better treatments for infections, age‑related immune problems, and some cancers.

How similar studies have performed: Prior studies have described emergency myelopoiesis pathways in lab and animal work, but applying a bone marrow‑on‑chip to model niche–stem cell interactions is a newer, less tested approach.

Where this research is happening

New York, United States

Researchers

About this research

  1. This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
  2. Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
  3. For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.
Conditions Blood DiseasesCancers
Last reviewed 2026-06-13 by the Find a Trial editorial team. Information on this page is for educational purposes and is not medical advice. Always consult qualified healthcare professionals about clinical trial participation.