Federal Grant Award Summary

Duke University's Office of Research Administration received a $597,613 Project Grant award from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) under the Allergy and Infectious Diseases Research program (CFDA 93.855), effective April 1, 2026, through March 31, 2031. This R01 grant supports investigator-initiated research developing ex vivo delivery of adeno-associated virus (AAV) vector-mediated gene therapy to genetically modify donor lung grafts during normothermic ex vivo lung perfusion (EVLP). The research aims to overexpress programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) in donor lungs to ameliorate acute cellular rejection and chronic lung allograft dysfunction, thereby reducing the need for high-dose immunosuppression and improving long-term transplant outcomes.

The grant funds two primary research aims: Aim 1 will evaluate the efficacy of AAV-mediated PD-L1 overexpression using two AAV serotypes (AAV9 and AAV4) delivered during EVLP to reduce alloimmune injury following transplantation, and Aim 2 will examine the durability of AAV transduction. The research is conducted in Durham, North Carolina, and addresses an unmet clinical need in lung transplantation, which currently experiences the lowest organ utilization rates and worst long-term recipient survival among solid organ transplants.