Federal Project Grant Award Summary

The University of Connecticut Health Center received a $523,037 Project Grant from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) under the Allergy and Infectious Diseases Research program (CFDA 93.855), effective February 1, 2026 through January 31, 2031. The award supports biomedical research investigating the role of unanchored ubiquitin chains in non-canonical inflammasome signaling, with particular focus on understanding regulatory mechanisms of caspase-4/5 and caspase-11 activation in response to bacterial endotoxin (lipopolysaccharide). The research aims to advance knowledge of inflammasome-related pathogenic mechanisms and identify potential therapeutic targets for sepsis management.

The research deliverables will include scientific investigation into how the protein UBXN1 (ubiquitin regulatory X domain-containing protein 1) regulates non-canonical inflammasome signaling, with potential applications toward developing effective therapeutic interventions for sepsis—a life-threatening condition affecting over 1.5 million individuals annually in the United States with no currently available effective treatments. The project will be conducted at the awardee's Farmington, Connecticut facility and will advance the NIH's broader mission to support investigator-initiated biomedical research addressing urgent infectious disease challenges through competitive peer-reviewed evaluation of scientific merit, technical adequacy, and public health relevance.