Federal Grant Award Summary

The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center received a $799,693 Project Grant from the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) under the Diabetes, Digestive, and Kidney Diseases Extramural Research program (CFDA 93.847), effective June 1, 2026 through April 30, 2030. The project delivers advanced biomedical research focused on developing immune-checkpoint engineered islets as a beta cell replacement therapy for Type 1 Diabetes (T1D). The research aims to address the critical challenge of allogeneic pancreatic islet transplant rejection by bioengineering beta cells with multiple immune checkpoint ligands to induce long-term transplant tolerance without requiring systemic immunosuppression.

The grant supports three primary research objectives: optimization of the tolerogenic formulation for allogeneic beta cell transplantation by examining PD-L1/HVEM ratios and ligand density; engineering of decellularized pancreas matrix with immune checkpoint molecules to improve clinical translatability; and elucidation of the immunological mechanisms underlying tolerance induction and maintenance. The research integrates advances in chemistry, chemical biology, nanotechnology, and immunology with potential for rapid clinical translation to improve treatment outcomes for Type 1 Diabetes patients.