Federal Project Grant Award Summary

The Jackson Laboratory was awarded $354,000 by the National Institute on Aging (NIA) under the Aging Research program (CFDA 93.866) effective March 15, 2026, with a project completion date of March 14, 2028. This Project Grant funds the development of an automatable protocol for creating human induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC)-derived microglia and their co-culture with primary astrocytes from Alzheimer's disease (AD) patients. The deliverable is a scalable, standardized in vitro model system that enables large-scale studies of microglia-astrocyte interactions in a diseased environment, allowing researchers to identify disease-associated expression quantitative trait loci (eQTLs) and better understand how the 90 known AD-associated genetic variants exert their functional effects through microglial cell biology.

This research addresses a critical gap in understanding non-neuronal cell contributions to AD progression, as the majority of AD risk genes are expressed in microglia yet remain understudied compared to amyloid beta-targeting approaches. By developing standardized co-cultures from genetically diverse patient populations, the project will generate scientific insights necessary to link specific genetic variants to disease mechanisms and potentially identify novel risk variants, thereby supporting the NIA's mission to advance prevention and treatment strategies for Alzheimer's disease and related dementias.