# IMPACT OF T CELLS ON AGE-RELATED VASCULAR DYSFUNCTION: A TRANSLATIONAL APPROACH - DIVERSITY SUPPLEMENT

> **NIH NIH R01** · UTAH STATE HIGHER EDUCATION SYSTEM--UNIVERSITY OF UTAH · 2020 · $44,611

## Abstract

Project Summary/ Abstract
Advanced age is a leading risk factor for cardiovascular diseases (CVD). As individuals age, they experience
numerous vascular alterations which include increased arterial stiffness and reduced endothelial-dependent
vasodilation. An underlying disturbance common in many CVDs is chronic inflammation; but its specific role
has not been clearly elucidated. T cells play a central role in the immune response, and may be implicated in
age-related arterial inflammation and the accompanying vascular dysfunction. We will employ a translational
approach to examine the role of T cells in this process. We hypothesize that T cells from older human donors
will home to the vasculature of humanized immuno-deficient mice and induce inflammation and subsequent
arterial dysfunction. To test this, we will adoptively transfer T cells from young and older healthy human donors
to young and old NOD-scid/γcnull/A2 humanized mice and assess immune cell infiltration, inflammation,
arterial function, and ROS. This will allow us to assess the role of T cells per se, and discover their mechanistic
function in the arterial dysfunction seen with age.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10168869
- **Project number:** 3R01AG060395-02S1
- **Recipient organization:** UTAH STATE HIGHER EDUCATION SYSTEM--UNIVERSITY OF UTAH
- **Principal Investigator:** Anthony John Donato
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $44,611
- **Award type:** 3
- **Project period:** 2019-04-15 → 2023-01-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10168869

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10168869, IMPACT OF T CELLS ON AGE-RELATED VASCULAR DYSFUNCTION: A TRANSLATIONAL APPROACH - DIVERSITY SUPPLEMENT (3R01AG060395-02S1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-24 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10168869. Licensed CC0.

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