Federal Grant Award Summary

The National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR), under its Oral Diseases and Disorders Research program (CFDA 93.121), awarded The Ohio State University $433,125 on July 8, 2026, for an exploratory R21 research project examining the impact of HIV-induced immune dysregulation on Kaposi sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) oral infection. The project, scheduled for completion by July 7, 2028, will deliver fundamental research utilizing human tonsil organoid cultures—three-dimensional in vitro tissue models that preserve physiological architecture and immune cell diversity—to investigate the mechanisms by which HIV infection enhances oral acquisition of KSHV, promotes persistent infection, and increases the risk of KSHV-associated tumorigenesis in co-infected individuals.

The research addresses a significant public health challenge by elucidating how HIV-related immune dysregulation compromises lymphoid tissue function in the tonsils, a critical first-line defense against oral pathogens, and how this dysfunction facilitates enhanced KSHV persistence and malignancy risk. By leveraging human tonsil organoid systems rather than traditional animal models, the project will generate novel mechanistic insights into immune checkpoint dysfunction, B lymphocyte reservoir dynamics, and viral replication patterns in oral tissues, with potential implications for developing targeted immunotherapeutic interventions in the HIV-KSHV co-infected population.