Federal Project Grant Award Summary

The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) awarded $184,000 in project grant funding to the Scripps Research Institute under the Allergy and Infectious Diseases Research program (CFDA 93.855) for the period April 1, 2026 through March 31, 2028. The research deliverable focuses on elucidating the proximal regulation of innate immune signaling pathways relevant to ischemia/reperfusion injury (IRI), specifically examining how the toll-like receptor coreceptor cluster of differentiation 14 (CD14) regulates NLRP3 inflammasome activation in renal tubule epithelial cells. The research is structured around two specific aims designed to determine whether CD14 must engage with TLR2 or TLR4 to trigger NLRP3 signaling, and whether CD14 can directly activate NLRP3 pathways independent of toll-like receptor engagement.

This investigator-initiated basic science research will advance understanding of damage-associated molecular pattern (DAMP) signaling mechanisms underlying kidney IRI and identify potential therapeutic targets for monoclonal antibody blockade of CD14 as a clinical intervention strategy. The work is being conducted at the awardee's La Jolla, California facility and represents a foundational contribution to defining how pattern recognition receptor signaling can be effectively and selectively targeted to prevent inflammatory and cell death cascades associated with vascular compromise and tissue ischemia/reperfusion injury.