How the immune system and gut bacteria shape food allergy
Official title: Immunological and Microbial Mechanisms in Food Allergy
Funded at Boston Children's Hospital · NIH-11252274 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This research looks at how certain immune cells and gut bacteria are linked to food allergies in children and adults.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Boston Children's Hospital NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Boston, United States) |
| Project start | November 21, 2016 |
| Project end | January 31, 2028 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $627,598 |
| NIH project number | 5R01AI126915-09 |
| Project ID | NIH-11252274 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal participants are children and adults with diagnosed IgE-mediated food allergies who can provide blood and stool samples and attend clinic visits.
✕Less likely to help
People without immune-driven (IgE-mediated) food allergies or those unable to provide samples or attend visits are unlikely to benefit directly from participating.
What this research studies
From a patient perspective, researchers compare blood and stool samples from people with food allergy to those without to see differences in immune cells and gut microbes. They focus on a kind of regulatory T cell (RORγt+ Treg) and signals like RELMβ and TSLPR that may make tolerance to foods break down. The team uses findings from human samples together with laboratory mouse work to test how microbes and immune signals cause or protect against allergy. The goal is to link specific microbes and immune checkpoints to whether someone develops or outgrows food allergy.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could point to new ways to restore healthy immune responses or change the gut microbiome to prevent or reduce food allergies and severe reactions.
How similar studies have gone: Previous human and mouse studies have already linked gut bacteria and RORγt+ regulatory T cells to food allergy and shown changes after oral immunotherapy, so this work builds on promising prior findings.
Where this research is happening
-
Boston Children's Hospital
Boston, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Chatila, Talal Amine — Boston Children's Hospital
- Study coordinator: Chatila, Talal Amine
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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.