New bacterial pathway that helps cause bladder infections
Official title: A Novel Metabolic Pathway Regulates Urinary Tract Infections in the Bladder
Funded at Columbia University Health Sciences · NIH-11380497 · Data updated 2026-11-12
Researchers are exploring how bacteria steal nutrients in the bladder and how the body fights them to help people with urinary tract infections.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Columbia University Health Sciences NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (New York, United States) |
| Project start | September 24, 2014 |
| Project end | July 31, 2028 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $247,900 |
| NIH project number | 5U54DK104309-12 |
| Project ID | NIH-11380497 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
People who have frequent, recurrent, or complicated bacterial urinary tract infections would be the most relevant candidates for participation or future therapies.
✕Less likely to help
People without bacterial UTIs or those with non-bacterial urinary conditions are unlikely to gain direct benefit from this specific work.
What this research studies
From a patient perspective, scientists will look at how bacteria get the iron they need from urine and bladder cells, focusing on molecules called siderophores and bacterial heme transporters. They will study the bladder and kidney lining’s production of a defensive protein (NGAL) that captures bacterial iron carriers and stops bacterial growth. The team will use laboratory bacterial models, tissue and cell studies, and likely animal or human-derived samples to map these pathways. The aim is to find new targets to stop bacteria from thriving in the urinary tract.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could point to new ways to prevent or treat urinary tract infections by blocking bacterial iron uptake.
How similar studies have gone: Prior research has shown NGAL can trap bacterial siderophores and limit infection, while targeting bacterial heme uptake is a newer and less-tested approach.
Where this research is happening
-
Columbia University Health Sciences
New York, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Barasch, Jonathan M. — Columbia University Health Sciences
- Study coordinator: Barasch, Jonathan M.
Related research
Other NIH-funded projects on the same topics.
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New ways to stop urinary tract infections by blocking bacterial adhesion
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Enterococcal Proteases and CAUTI: How the body’s environment activates bacteria to cause infections
A small grant is exploring how two enzymes from Enterococcus faecalis interact with the urine environment to drive catheter-associated urinary tract infections and why these infections are hard to treat.
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Daily nitrofurantoin with or without bladder cauterization to prevent recurrent bladder infections in women
This study tests two approaches to prevent recurrent bladder infections in women: taking a low-dose antibiotic every day versus adding a bladder cauterization procedure plus the same daily antibiotic.
-
New oral antifungal for tough Candida UTIs
A Johns Hopkins team is testing a new oral antifungal medicine called fungerps to treat urinary tract infections caused by azole-resistant Candida fungi.
-
Understanding how bacteria and fungi interact to cause catheter-related urinary infections
Researchers are studying how common bladder infections linked to catheters happen when bacteria and fungi work together, and what that could mean for better prevention and treatment.
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.