Understanding Flu Vaccine Protection in Older Adults
Official title: Uncovering latent factors underlying weak and robust responses to influenza vaccine in healthy and obese older adults
Funded at University of Pittsburgh at Pittsburgh · NIH-11109633 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This research wants to understand why some older adults get strong protection from the flu vaccine while others get weaker protection, especially if they are also obese.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of Pittsburgh at Pittsburgh NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Pittsburgh, United States) |
| Project start | July 13, 2022 |
| Project end | June 30, 2027 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $762,973 |
| NIH project number | 5R01AI170108-04 |
| Project ID | NIH-11109633 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal candidates for this type of research would be older adults, both those of healthy weight and those who are obese, who are willing to receive a flu vaccine and provide samples for detailed immune analysis.
✕Less likely to help
Patients who are not older adults or who do not receive influenza vaccines would not directly benefit from this specific research.
What this research studies
We know that flu vaccines don't work the same for everyone, especially older adults and those who are obese. This project will look closely at the immune cells and genes of older individuals who have either a very strong or a very weak response to the flu vaccine. By comparing these extreme responses, we hope to find specific cellular and molecular reasons for these differences. This will help us learn more about how the body reacts to the vaccine and why some people are better protected than others.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could lead to better flu vaccines or personalized vaccination strategies that offer stronger protection for older and obese individuals.
How similar studies have gone: Other studies have successfully used similar approaches to analyze genetic factors in extreme responses, suggesting this method can yield valuable insights.
Where this research is happening
-
University of Pittsburgh at Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Alcorn, John F — University of Pittsburgh at Pittsburgh
- Study coordinator: Alcorn, John F
Related research
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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.