New protection against TNF-driven gut inflammation
Official title: Novel mechanisms protecting the gut from TNF
Funded at Weill Medical Coll of Cornell Univ · NIH-11516465 · Data updated 2026-11-12
A new grant is studying how the gut can be protected from harmful TNF-driven inflammation to help people with gut diseases.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R37 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Weill Medical Coll of Cornell Univ NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (New York, United States) |
| Project start | July 18, 2023 |
| Project end | June 30, 2028 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $133,905 |
| NIH project number | 3R37AI174468-04S1 |
| Project ID | NIH-11516465 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal candidates would be individuals with inflammatory bowel disease or conditions characterized by TNF-driven gut inflammation, for whom gut-protective pathways could be relevant.
✕Less likely to help
Patients without gut inflammatory conditions or those not influenced by TNF-related pathways may not benefit from these findings.
What this research studies
This project aims to understand why TNF can be both helpful and harmful in the intestine and to identify a new pathway that guards the gut from TNF-related damage. The researchers focus on group 3 innate lymphoid cells (ILC3s) and how they produce protective prostaglandins and growth factors, rather than traditional immune responses. By testing these mechanisms, they hope to explain why some patients benefit from anti-TNF therapies while others do not and how to preserve gut health. The work involves mechanistic experiments in relevant models to uncover how ILC3s shape the balance between protection and inflammation in the human gut.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could lead to new strategies that enhance gut protection for people with inflammatory bowel diseases or states of excessive TNF activity.
How similar studies have gone: Previous work shows TNF plays a key role in gut inflammation and that immune cells like ILC3s can influence tissue protection, making this a promising but emerging approach.
Where this research is happening
-
Weill Medical Coll of Cornell Univ
New York, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Sonnenberg, Gregory F — Weill Medical Coll of Cornell Univ
- Study coordinator: Sonnenberg, Gregory F
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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.