Federal Grant Award Summary

The National Institutes of Health Office of the Director awarded Columbia University's Health Sciences Division a $814,060 Project Grant under the Research Infrastructure Programs (CFDA 93.351) effective July 15, 2026, through March 31, 2030. This award supports the development and provision of HLA (Human Leukocyte Antigen)-transgenic fetal pig thymus tissue as a research resource for the biomedical research community. The primary deliverable is making fetal thymic tissue from genetically modified miniature swine—containing HLA-A2 and HLA-DQ8 knock-in transgenes—widely available to investigators developing Human Immune System (HIS) mice models. This transgenic tissue addresses a critical research need by providing a renewable, standardized alternative to increasingly scarce human fetal thymus tissue while improving the functional outcomes of human T cell development in these preclinical models.

The grant supports research activities to validate the HLA transgenic pigs and establish this resource infrastructure. Specifically, Columbia will test the impact of HLA-A2 and HLA-DQ8 transgenes on human thymocyte development and T cell function, comparing human T cell homeostasis, HLA-restricted T cell responses, and T cell repertoire among HIS mice constructed with non-transgenic versus HLA-transgenic fetal pig thymus. This research model development resource directly advances multiple disease research areas across the NIH-sponsored scientific community by providing controlled, reproducible tissue with enhanced biological relevance for immunological research.