Project Grant R01AT013333

The National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health awarded Rutgers The State University of New Jersey, doing business as RBHS-School of Nursing, $592,063 on July 20, 2026, under the Research and Training in Complementary and Integrative Health program (CFDA 93.213) for mechanistic research into probiotic interactions with host diet, digestive metabolism, and the microbial system.

The award funds investigation of two metabolic pathways by which Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG regulates gut mucosal homeostasis and tissue repair. The first pathway involves the probiotic bacterium directly producing nicotinamide metabolites, one of which host cells can uptake and use for NAD synthesis—a critical coenzyme in energy production, DNA repair, and gene expression. The second pathway involves the probiotic facilitating degradation and removal of a barrier-impairing serum arginine metabolite. Both pathways are driven by probiotic colonization in mice and by a tryptophan-sufficient diet and both impact gut barrier integrity. Functional evaluations across mice, human cells, and fruit fly models demonstrate conserved protection of gut barrier integrity through these mechanisms. The research applies stable isotope tracing to define the probiotic's metabolic impact on NAD turnover and on key NAD-dependent enzymes identified as targets mediating probiotic protection.

The research team includes a nutrient physiologist, metabolomic biochemist, and gut biologist. Performance occurs in Newark, New Jersey. The period of performance runs from July 20, 2026, through April 30, 2031.