Federal Project Grant Award Summary

The Ohio State University received a $375,898 Project Grant from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS) under the Biomedical Research and Research Training program (CFDA 93.859), awarded on March 10, 2026, with a completion date of February 28, 2031. This five-year research project investigates oligosaccharide cross-feeding and competition within microbial communities, specifically examining how human gut bacteria structurally modify dietary polysaccharide intermediates to create nutrient reservoirs that enhance bacterial fitness in competitive environments. The research addresses a significant gap in understanding microbial carbohydrate metabolism by moving beyond traditional pure-culture assays to examine cooperation and competition dynamics in natural microbial communities.

The project deliverables encompass three primary research objectives: first, characterizing the structures of modified oligosaccharides produced by gut bacteria to understand how microbial metabolism alters available carbohydrate nutrients; second, establishing how oligosaccharide structures influence bacterial nutrient acquisition and utilization through genetic approaches and synthetic microbial community studies; and third, determining how microbial community composition and host diet shape oligosaccharide availability and utilization. These research activities will generate fundamental knowledge regarding microbial carbohydrate metabolism and inter-bacterial interactions within the human gastrointestinal microbiome, contributing to the NIGMS mission of advancing understanding of biological processes underlying human health.