Improving survival of high-risk corneal transplants by controlling T cells
Local regulation and deletion of T cells to induce tolerance and establish long-term survival of high-risk corneal transplants
This project tests whether carefully reducing harmful T cells and boosting regulatory T cells can help people with high-risk cornea transplants keep their new corneas long-term.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of Miami School of Medicine NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Coral Gables, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11290754 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
Researchers will try combinations that remove or inactivate aggressive T cells while expanding regulatory T cells to reduce immune attack on transplanted corneas. They will study low-dose post-transplant cyclophosphamide (PTCy) and agents that target immune pathways such as TNFRSF25 and BET proteins in lab and animal models to find schedules and doses that produce lasting tolerance. The work is translational preclinical research meant to optimize approaches before any human trials. The ultimate aim is treatments that prevent rejection without lifelong heavy immune suppression.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Ideal candidates would be people receiving corneal transplants who have high-risk features such as a vascularized corneal bed or a history of prior graft failure.
Not a fit: Patients with low-risk corneal transplants, non-immune causes of graft failure, or advanced eye disease are less likely to benefit from these immune-focused approaches.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this could lower the risk of corneal graft rejection and help people with high-risk transplants keep vision longer with less chronic immunosuppression.
How similar studies have performed: Related strategies like expanding regulatory T cells and using post-transplant cyclophosphamide have shown promise in graft-versus-host disease and other settings, but applying them to vascularized corneal transplants is novel and experimental.
Where this research is happening
Coral Gables, United States
- University of Miami School of Medicine — Coral Gables, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Levy, Robert Benjamin — University of Miami School of Medicine
- Study coordinator: Levy, Robert Benjamin
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.