Federal Project Grant Award Summary

The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) awarded the University of Rochester a $1,042,346 Project Grant on January 28, 2026, under the Allergy and Infectious Diseases Research program (CFDA 93.855) to support research through December 31, 2030. This award funds investigator-initiated biomedical research focused on identifying critical age-associated immune pathways in extremely low gestational age neonates (ELGANs) that can be targeted for therapeutic intervention. The research addresses significant gaps in understanding normal human immune development in preterm infants and seeks to elucidate how common postnatal exposures disrupt normal immune maturation patterns, which the investigator team has previously linked to increased risk of respiratory illness later in infancy.

The project deliverables include the characterization of molecular programs defining normal immune maturation in ELGANs' T cells, identification of the earliest critical developmental windows responsive to postnatal intervention, and generation of scientific knowledge that could lead to targeted immunological treatments. This research responds to the stalled progress in reducing morbidity and mortality in extremely premature infants since the 1990s by investigating whether common ELGAN morbidities—including bronchopulmonary dysplasia, necrotizing enterocolitis, central white matter disease, retinopathy, and sepsis—share inflammation-mediated immune pathways as a unifying causal mechanism. The work will be conducted at the University of Rochester's Rochester, New York facility.