Understanding severe inflammatory arthritis from silica exposure
Official title: A novel model of severe inflammatory arthritis induced by pulmonary silica exposure
Funded at Scripps Research Institute, the · NIH-11170433 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This research explores how breathing in silica dust might lead to severe inflammatory arthritis, like rheumatoid arthritis, by studying it in a new way.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R21 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Scripps Research Institute, the NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (La Jolla, United States) |
| Project start | August 20, 2024 |
| Project end | July 31, 2026 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $230,000 |
| NIH project number | 5R21ES035980-02 |
| Project ID | NIH-11170433 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
This foundational research is not directly recruiting patients but focuses on understanding the disease mechanisms relevant to individuals with inflammatory arthritis, especially those with a history of silica exposure.
✕Less likely to help
Patients seeking immediate treatment options or direct clinical intervention would not directly benefit from this basic science project.
What this research studies
We know that people who work with silica dust can develop serious autoimmune diseases, including different types of arthritis. Currently, there isn't a good way to study how silica exposure specifically causes inflammatory arthritis in a lab setting. This project uses a special type of mouse that naturally develops autoimmune issues to see if silica exposure can trigger arthritis in their joints. By observing how their bodies react, we hope to learn more about the early stages of arthritis development linked to environmental factors.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could help us better understand how environmental exposures contribute to inflammatory arthritis, potentially leading to new ways to prevent or treat these conditions.
How similar studies have gone: While other animal models exist for silica-induced autoimmunity, this specific approach to creating an inflammatory arthritis model is novel and untested.
Where this research is happening
-
Scripps Research Institute, the
La Jolla, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Pollard, Kenneth Michael — Scripps Research Institute, the
- Study coordinator: Pollard, Kenneth Michael
Related research
Other NIH-funded projects on the same topics.
-
Understanding how immune checkpoint drugs can trigger inflammatory arthritis in cancer patients
This research looks at why some cancer patients develop inflammatory arthritis after PD-1 inhibitor therapy and what could be done to prevent it.
-
Antenatal DMARD Use and Mother-Child Health in Women with Chronic Inflammatory Arthritis
This project aims to understand how continuing pregnancy-safe arthritis medicines during pregnancy affects health outcomes for mothers with chronic inflammatory arthritis and their babies.
-
Gut barrier and antibiotics: how gut health affects inflammatory arthritis
Antibiotic use may increase the risk of inflammatory arthritis by changing the gut, and this project looks at how those gut changes influence joint inflammation in people with arthritis.
-
ctDNA biomarker to guide safety of cancer immunotherapy in inflammatory arthritis
A patient-facing biomarker study using a blood test to detect tumor DNA in people with cancer who develop inflammatory arthritis from immunotherapy, to help doctors pick safer treatment choices.
-
Setbp1’s role in how joint cells behave during inflammatory arthritis
This project looks at how a protein called SETBP1 affects delicate joint cells (FLS) that drive inflammation in arthritis, with potential implications for better treatments.
-
Bacteria-made indoles and inflammatory arthritis
A study from the University of Colorado Denver is looking at how gut bacteria convert tryptophan into indoles that may drive inflammatory arthritis in people.
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.