Project Grant R03HL184975

The National Institutes of Health National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute awarded the University of Alabama at Birmingham $222,750 on September 1, 2026, under the Cardiovascular Diseases Research program (CFDA 93.837) to investigate how innate lymphoid cell memory formed during neonatal lung injury contributes to chronic obstructive pulmonary disease development in adulthood.

The project, titled "Trained Immunity in Group 2 Innate Lymphoid Cells Links Neonatal to Adult Chronic Lung Disease," addresses gaps in understanding the transcriptional programs driving group 2 innate lymphoid cell (ILC2) activation, memory formation, and persistence in the neonatal lung. The research builds on prior findings showing that alterations in intestinal fungal and bacterial microbiome composition influence lung ILC2 recruitment and activation in a mouse model of bronchopulmonary dysplasia. The recipient institution identified memory ILC2s that persist into adulthood in its neonatal hyperoxia-induced model, suggesting a lasting connection between early lung injury and later chronic obstructive pulmonary disease pathogenesis. The central hypothesis is that perinatal interleukin-33-driven type 2 inflammation induces persistent memory ILC2s that promote chronic obstructive pulmonary disease progression upon subsequent exposure to type 2 inflammation. The project comprises two aims designed to elucidate the transcriptional programs driving innate immune memory formation in ILC2s during neonatal injury and establish the groundwork for future independent research.

Performance occurs in Birmingham, Alabama. The period of performance runs from September 1, 2026, through May 31, 2028. The assistance type is a Project Grant (R03).