Project Grant R21AI196571

The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases awarded The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center $249,000 on July 20, 2026, under the Allergy and Infectious Diseases Research program (CFDA 93.855).

The award funds research to develop tools for marginal zone-specific gene expression manipulation in B cells. The project investigates how mature B cell subsets—follicular, marginal zone, and B-1 cells—contribute to protective immune responses in infection and pathogenic responses in autoimmune disease. Research activities address the lack of tools to manipulate gene expression specifically in marginal zone B cells and identify their progeny, addressing barriers that currently hamper understanding of their roles in varied immune responses including bacterial infection response, autoimmune disease pathogenesis, and lymphoma development.

The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, a state-controlled nonprofit academic medical institution, is the recipient. Work is performed in Dallas, Texas. The period of performance runs from the award date through June 30, 2028.

This is a Project Grant, an assistance type supporting investigator-initiated biomedical research through NIH institutes. The program funds scientists, universities, and research organizations to study infectious, immunologic, and allergic diseases through competitive peer review of scientific merit, technical adequacy, investigator competency, facility adequacy, budget necessity, and program relevance.