Federal Project Grant Award Summary

Massachusetts General Hospital received a $123,750 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), awarded on May 18, 2026, with completion by April 30, 2028. The award funds research to develop molecularly-informed polygenic scores for predicting individual response to omega-3 fatty acid (N3FA) supplementation, with the goal of identifying which patients will benefit most from N3FA intervention for cardiometabolic disease prevention.

The project delivers research products including: (1) a series of molecularly-informed interaction-focused polygenic scores (IPGS) quantifying genetic variation in N3FA response across large observational datasets; (2) gene-by-environment interaction meta-analysis conducted across eight TopMED cohorts and the UK Biobank examining five key cardiometabolic risk factors (glycemic, inflammatory, and lipid markers); and (3) predictive genetic models that account for N3FA absorption and transduction pathways to enable targeted clinical trials. The research addresses substantial heterogeneity in treatment effects observed in N3FA supplementation trials by leveraging molecular biomarkers and genomic analysis to advance precision medicine approaches in cardiometabolic disease prevention.