Virus-based treatment to stop repeated urinary infections after a kidney transplant
Official title: Phage Therapy for Recurrent UTIs in Kidney Transplant Recipients
Funded at University of California, San Diego · NIH-11173628 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This trial gives phage medicines to women with kidney transplants who keep getting urinary tract infections to try to lower future infections by targeting the bacteria in the gut and bladder.
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 | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $317,863 |
| NIH project number | 5R01DK134726-02 |
| Project ID | NIH-11173628 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Women who have had a kidney transplant and suffer repeated urinary tract infections, especially when cultures show E. coli or Klebsiella, are the ideal candidates.
✕Less likely to help
People without a kidney transplant, men, those whose UTIs are caused by different bacteria, or those with ongoing severe infections may not be helped by this approach.
What this research studies
You would be randomly assigned to receive a targeted bacteriophage treatment or a placebo and followed for safety, tolerability, and whether infections come back less often. The phages are viruses that specifically kill E. coli and Klebsiella, common causes of UTIs in transplant patients. Doctors will collect urine and stool samples to see how the phage changes the bacteria living in your gut and urinary tract and will track any urinary infections, kidney function, and side effects. This is a phase I/II pilot at UC San Diego focused on female kidney transplant recipients with recurrent UTIs.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this could lower repeat UTIs, reduce antibiotic use, and help protect transplant kidney health.
How similar studies have gone: Early clinical uses of phage therapy for some bacterial infections have shown promise, but randomized trials to prevent recurrent UTIs in transplant patients are limited and this application is relatively novel.
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.
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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.
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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.