Federal Project Grant Award Summary

The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) awarded the University of Pittsburgh $416,873 on June 18, 2026, under the Allergy and Infectious Diseases Research program (CFDA 93.855) to develop and advance a human spinal cord organoid (HSCO) model for studying Enterovirus D68 (EV-D68) infection and associated immune mechanisms. The primary deliverable is the creation of a multicellular human model derived from induced pluripotent stem cells that replicates spinal cord tissue architecture, including neurons and glial cells, to investigate how EV-D68 infection triggers acute flaccid myelitis (AFM)—a paralytic condition affecting children with currently no specific treatments. The research addresses a critical knowledge gap by examining T cell recruitment to infected spinal cord tissue and Major Histocompatibility Complex Class I (MHC-I) modulation during viral infection, bridging translational science from animal models to human pathophysiology.

The award, set to conclude on May 31, 2028, will generate experimental findings and methodological advances in CNS organoid technology suitable for incorporation into infected tissue models without matrigel barriers, enabling future studies of viral pathogenesis and immune-mediated neural injury mechanisms. By establishing a human tissue platform for studying virus-immune interactions in the central nervous system, this research is expected to identify novel targets for therapeutic intervention and clarify the relative contributions of viral and immune-mediated damage in EV-D68-associated paralysis, ultimately supporting development of treatment strategies to reduce long-term neurological deficits in pediatric patients.