Federal Project Grant Award Summary

Rochester Institute of Technology received a $561,410 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 2, 2026, with a completion date of March 31, 2029. The project will conduct surveillance and profiling of antibiotic resistance mechanisms in commensal Neisseria populations to identify potential reservoirs of resistance genes that may transfer to Neisseria gonorrhoeae. Research deliverables include profiling resistance in approximately 1,000 commensal isolates across nine antimicrobial drugs (including novel agents such as gentamicin, gepotidacin, and zoliflodacin) and determining associations between resistance and host-specific factors.

This research addresses an urgent public health threat by characterizing the complete resistome—the total collection of antibiotic resistance mechanisms available within the Neisseria genus—to support development of improved surveillance methods that may aid prevention of future resistance outbreaks resulting from horizontal DNA transfer. By expanding understanding of how commensal species serve as resistance reservoirs and how antibiotic usage selects for resistance in these populations, the project will generate scientific knowledge intended to inform surveillance strategies and therapeutic development for gonorrheal infections resistant to current clinical antibiotics.