Using viruses to treat recurrent urinary tract infections in kidney transplant patients
Official title: Phage Therapy for Recurrent UTIs in Kidney Transplant Recipients
Funded at University of California, San Diego · NIH-10801997 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This study is looking at a new treatment using viruses to help women who have had kidney transplants and keep getting urinary tract infections, aiming to see if this method can help reduce infections without the side effects of regular antibiotics.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of California, San Diego NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (La Jolla, United States) |
| Project start | August 16, 2024 |
| Project end | June 30, 2027 |
| Funding year | 2024 |
| Award (this year) | $332,372 |
| NIH project number | 1R01DK134726-01A1 |
| Project ID | NIH-10801997 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal candidates for this research are female kidney transplant recipients who experience recurrent urinary tract infections.
✕Less likely to help
Patients who do not have recurrent urinary tract infections or those who are not kidney transplant recipients may not benefit from this research.
What this research studies
This research investigates the use of bacteriophage therapy to treat recurrent urinary tract infections (rUTIs) in kidney transplant recipients, particularly women. The approach involves administering specific viruses that target and kill the bacteria responsible for these infections, such as E. coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae. By focusing on the gut and urinary microbiome, the therapy aims to reduce the frequency of rUTIs while minimizing the adverse effects associated with traditional antibiotics. The study will compare the safety and effectiveness of phage therapy against a placebo in a clinical trial setting.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this research could provide a novel and effective treatment option for kidney transplant recipients suffering from recurrent urinary tract infections.
How similar studies have gone: Other research has shown promise in using phage therapy for bacterial infections, indicating potential success for this novel approach.
Where this research is happening
-
University of California, San Diego
La Jolla, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Aslam, Saima — University of California, San Diego
- Study coordinator: Aslam, Saima
Related research
Other NIH-funded projects on the same topics.
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Microbial clues to diagnose and predict infections in kidney transplant patients
A patient-focused project will look for microbial biomarkers in stool, blood, and urine to help doctors predict and diagnose infections in people who have had a kidney transplant.
-
Immunological mechanisms behind treatment-resistant kidney transplant rejection
This grant explores why certain kidney transplant rejections don’t respond to standard treatments and what immune cells in the graft are driving that resistance.
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Complement-Bound Exosomes and Kidney Transplant Immunity
This project studies how kidney transplant injury and rejection happen after surgery and whether blocking certain immune pathways during organ preservation could improve transplant outcomes.
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Blood vessel signals predicting heart problems after kidney transplant
This project studies blood markers and tissue patterns after kidney transplants to identify which patients are at highest risk of cardiovascular problems.
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Understanding how BK virus links infection to kidney transplant rejection
This project looks at how BK polyomavirus reactivation affects kidney transplant patients and aims to use pre-transplant T cell information to tailor immunosuppression and monitoring.
-
Characterization of a LILRB3 SNP cluster and its link to kidney transplant outcomes
A study in kidney transplant recipients looks at genetic factors that may be tied to higher risk of graft failure.
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.