Mapping cell lipids to find new treatment targets
Official title: Spatial metabolomics with subcellular resolution to identify therapeutic targets
Funded at Louisiana State Univ A&m Col Baton Rouge · NIH-11317169 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project develops ultra-high-resolution ways to map fats inside cells to find targets that could help people with drug-resistant cancers and other diseases linked to lipid problems.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Louisiana State Univ A&m Col Baton Rouge NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Baton Rouge, United States) |
| Project start | July 7, 2023 |
| Project end | April 30, 2028 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $375,000 |
| NIH project number | 5R35GM150564-04 |
| Project ID | NIH-11317169 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
People with cancers that have become resistant to chemotherapy, or patients willing to provide tissue samples for research, would be the most directly relevant groups.
✕Less likely to help
Healthy people or patients whose conditions are unrelated to lipid metabolism likely would not see direct benefit from this project.
What this research studies
The team is creating spatial metabolomics methods that can see lipid types and chemical damage inside single cells and tissues. They will study how lipid peroxidation (a chemical change tied to ferroptosis) happens in cell cultures and animal models of drug-resistant cancer. By combining multiple molecular measurements at subcellular resolution, the researchers hope to pinpoint lipid changes that trigger a form of cell death useful for killing resistant cancer cells. Findings may also shed light on lipid-related processes in heart disease, diabetes, and neurodegeneration.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could reveal new molecular targets that allow therapies to kill cancer cells that no longer respond to standard drugs.
How similar studies have gone: Laboratory studies targeting ferroptosis and lipid peroxidation have shown promise in killing drug-resistant cancer cells in preclinical models, but clinical translation remains early.
Where this research is happening
-
Louisiana State Univ A&m Col Baton Rouge
Baton Rouge, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Gartia, Manas Ranjan — Louisiana State Univ A&m Col Baton Rouge
- Study coordinator: Gartia, Manas Ranjan
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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.