# Modulation of lung immunity by CoronaVirus

> **NIH NIH U19** · JACKSON LABORATORY · 2020 · $518,190

## Abstract

We propose a U19 Cooperative Center on Human Immunology at The Jackson Laboratory (JAX CCHI) to
elucidate the innate immune networks that shape adaptive immune responses to respiratory viral
infections in the human lung. Epithelial barriers lie at the interface between host and environment, where
they sense invading pathogen. Dendritic cells (DCs) present pathogen-derived antigens to T and B cells
to induce immune responses. However, the impact of the human lung tissue environment on DC and
other cells, such as the newly identified innate lymphoid cell (ILC) family, as well as bacteria-reactive
MAIT cells, is not completely understood. An understudied environmental factor is the lung microbiome.
Microbiota are known to critically modulate the function of immune cells, particularly at mucosal surfaces,
but how this occurs in the lung is not fully addressed. The JAX CCHI seeks to address these critical
questions using a multi-disciplinary experimental approach that will integrate immunology with epithelial
cell biology along with genomic, cellular, functional and microbiome parameters identified in human lung
tissues. Our overarching hypothesis is that the quality and magnitude of mucosal T cell responses to
respiratory viral infections are determined by the crosstalk between microbiota, epithelial cells and
leukocytes. To address this hypothesis, we structured the JAX CCHI around two integrated research
projects focused on basic immunological mechanisms of lung antiviral immunity; a technology
development project that will create sophisticated cellular models leveraging 3D bioprinting, gene editing
tools and microbiome-immune assays to support project objectives; a sample core for storage and
distribution of human tissues; and a microbiome core for specialized microbiome profiling, cultivation, and
computational analysis. Our Center will bring together clinicians with experts in lung immunology, the
microbiome, bioengineering, genomics and computational biology to achieve our goals and maximize the
potential of this research. An administrative core will provide coordination, communication and oversight
for the program. The goals of this CCHI are to: 1) Understand how the networks of epithelial cells and
immune cells in the human lung regulate innate and adaptive immunity to respiratory viruses; 2) Define
how inflammation driven by the microbiome dictates the steady state of tissue, i.e., immune set-point; 3)
Determine if and how this immune set-point is altered in two pulmonary diseases, childhood asthma and
adult lung cancer which have a major impact on public health; and 4) Develop innovative technologies to

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10134706
- **Project number:** 3U19AI142733-02S1
- **Recipient organization:** JACKSON LABORATORY
- **Principal Investigator:** Anna Karolina Palucka
- **Activity code:** U19 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $518,190
- **Award type:** 3
- **Project period:** 2020-04-08 → 2023-02-28

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10134706

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10134706, Modulation of lung immunity by CoronaVirus (3U19AI142733-02S1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-24 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10134706. Licensed CC0.

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