Immune reasons some people get severe, spread-out Valley fever
Adaptive Immune Dysregulation in Disseminated Coccidioidomycosis
This project finds immune signals, HLA types, and fungal pieces linked to people who develop severe, disseminated Valley fever.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of California Los Angeles NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Los Angeles, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11247123 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
From the patient perspective, researchers will collect blood and immune cells from people who have had Valley fever that spread beyond the lungs and use modern lab methods to read which genes and chromatin regions in T cells are active. They will identify which HLA (MHC) types present pieces of the Coccidioides fungus and which fungal peptides trigger or fail to trigger protective T-cell responses. The team will map T-cell receptor patterns and the antigen-presenting events that may explain why some people's immune systems fail to control the fungus. The work combines patient samples with advanced sequencing (including ATAC-seq) and peptide-discovery techniques to pinpoint immune features tied to severe disease.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Ideal candidates are people with current or past disseminated coccidioidomycosis (Valley fever that spread beyond the lungs) who can provide blood or other samples.
Not a fit: People with mild, self-limited Valley fever or unrelated health conditions are unlikely to benefit directly from this project.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this could help predict who is at risk for severe Valley fever and point toward better vaccines or immune-targeted treatments.
How similar studies have performed: Related immune-mapping and HLA-peptide discovery approaches have clarified immune protection in other infections, but applying them to disseminated Valley fever is relatively new.
Where this research is happening
Los Angeles, United States
- University of California Los Angeles — Los Angeles, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Butte, Manish J — University of California Los Angeles
- Study coordinator: Butte, Manish J
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 below.