Federal Project Grant Award Summary

The University of California, San Francisco received a $174,824 Project Grant from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) under the Allergy and Infectious Diseases Research program (CFDA 93.855), awarded April 6, 2026, with completion targeted for March 31, 2028. The primary deliverable is the development and characterization of a humanized IL-33 mouse model in which the human IL-33 gene sequence, including asthma-associated regulatory regions spanning approximately 49 kilobases, will be integrated into the mouse ROSA26 locus using bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC) technology and piggyBac transposon delivery. The engineered mouse strain will incorporate loxP sites for conditional IL-33 deletion and dual fluorescent reporters (CITRINE and mCHERRY) to enable real-time monitoring of human and mouse IL-33 expression patterns.

The research will produce a cross-bred mouse model with exclusively human IL-33 protein expression driven by human regulatory elements, allowing comparative analysis of how IL-33 localization to bronchial epithelium and endothelium versus type 2 alveolar epithelium affects allergic lung inflammation and epithelial remodeling. UCSF will deliver detailed characterization data through acute lung allergen challenge studies and spatial transcriptomic analyses, providing critical insights into IL-33 biology relevant to allergic disease mechanisms. These scientific products address fundamental questions about cytokine localization in allergic inflammation and will advance understanding of IL-33's role in asthma pathogenesis.