Federal Grant Award Summary

The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) awarded The Leland Stanford Junior University a Project Grant of $165,888 under the Cardiovascular Diseases Research program (CFDA 93.837), effective April 15, 2026, with a completion date of March 31, 2031. This award funds research to investigate the role of T cell contributions to neointima formation in pulmonary hypertension (PH), a fatal disease characterized by abnormal cell proliferation that progressively occludes pulmonary arteries and leads to right heart failure. The research will utilize a mouse model of PH to examine how proliferating T cell lineages and their expressed ligands contribute to neointimal lesion development, with particular focus on the pathogenic mechanisms involving CD4+ helper T cells and the lymphotoxin signaling pathway.

The research deliverables will include identification and characterization of pathogenic T cell clones through single-cell and bulk T cell receptor sequencing analysis, development of cellular interaction maps between T cells and vascular cells to elucidate key pathogenic signals, validation of lymphotoxin as a critical T cell-vascular cell signaling molecule in human PH samples, and demonstration of therapeutic potential through in vivo studies of lymphotoxin blockade. These findings are intended to advance understanding of the immune mechanisms underlying PH pathogenesis and establish potential targets for novel therapeutic interventions beyond current treatment options, ultimately contributing to improved outcomes for patients with this debilitating disease.