Federal Grant Award Summary

The National Institute on Drug Abuse awarded a $147,037 Project Grant to the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) on July 15, 2026, under the Drug Use and Addiction Research Programs (CFDA 93.279). The award supports a K24 mid-career development and mentorship initiative led by Dr. Jiang, a physician-scientist with 8 years of clinical experience in infectious diseases and 23 years of translational research expertise in immunopathogenesis. The primary deliverables include establishing a mentorship framework to develop junior faculty and early-career researchers in patient-oriented translational research, with particular emphasis on characterizing drug use-associated immunopathogenesis through standardized immunologic assessment methods and advanced statistical mapping techniques.

The research program will determine immunophenotypes and immune perturbations in chronic drug users to identify mechanisms of immunopathogenesis and develop evidence-based therapeutic strategies to prevent or reverse pathogenic outcomes. The award period extends through June 30, 2031, and addresses a significant knowledge gap in patient-centric research on drug use-associated immunopathogenesis. Deliverables will include training outcomes for mentored junior investigators, novel characterization of immune dysfunction in chronic drug users, and identification of potential therapeutic targets to improve patient health and quality of life in this underserved research area.