# Facilitation of Post-Acute Sequela to COVID Studies in Mouse Models

> **NIH NIH U42** · UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI-COLUMBIA · 2021 · $466,389

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
An overarching goal of the Mutant Mouse Resource and Research Center at the University of Missouri (MU-
MMRRC) is to optimize and refine mouse models so that biomedical research using these models can proceed
rapidly and effectively. The study of COVID-19 has relied on mouse models such as the B6.Cg-Tg(K18-
ACE2)2Prlmn/J mouse (K18-hACE2). While great advances have already been made, some studies, notably
those assessing Post-Acute Sequela of COVID-19 (PASC) are hampered by the fact that infected mice are
currently maintained at animal biosafety level 3. These facilities often have limited capacity, resulting in delays
in research and the elevated costs associated with this level of biocontainment. The study of disease
pathogenesis associated with reinfection of SARS-CoV-2 and cross infection with variants is also hampered as
such studies are by nature longer in duration and also require the need for PASC assessment. Thus, there is a
pressing need to establish strategies by which studies of PASC can be accomplished more quickly and
economically. Herein we propose that such studies can be performed in modified biosafety level 2 conditions,
provided that viral clearance is established to a point acceptable to investigators as well as experts in institution
biosafety and animal care and use. The objective of this proposal is to assess the kinetics / natural history of
SARS-CoV-2 in the K18-hACE2 mouse model to determine when clearance is reliably observed and to establish
standard operating procedures for the safe transfer of mice from ABSL-3 facilities to more accessible and less
expensive ABSL-2 facilities. To broaden the applicability of these strategies to future research, studies will be
performed using two different routes of infection and three different variants of the virus. Moreover, we will also
perform these studies using two gut microbiomes that differ in species richness and that have been associated
with differing disease susceptibility in preliminary studies. A second objective will be to similarly assess the
kinetics of reinfection by SARS-CoV-2 and cross infection with two different variants of virus. The resulting
expansion of the utility of models of COVID-19 for PASC studies will be critical to research on this devastating
disease.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10399806
- **Project number:** 3U42OD010918-22S1
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI-COLUMBIA
- **Principal Investigator:** James Amos-Landgraf
- **Activity code:** U42 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $466,389
- **Award type:** 3
- **Project period:** 2000-05-01 → 2025-02-28

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10399806

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10399806, Facilitation of Post-Acute Sequela to COVID Studies in Mouse Models (3U42OD010918-22S1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10399806. Licensed CC0.

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