# Investigation of memory B cell response in asthmatic lungs.

> **NIH NIH R21** · LOYOLA UNIVERSITY CHICAGO · 2022 · $185,725

## Abstract

Project Summary/Abstract
Allergic asthma is a chronic inflammatory disease of the lungs without cures and effective preventions.
Allergen-specific IgE antibodies drive inflammation, airway constriction, and respiratory distress in patients with
allergic asthma. Evidence for the existence of a local cellular source of pathogenic IgE in the airway is
mounting. However, the precise identity of these cells as well as mechanisms for their localization within the
asthmatic lung remain elusive. Using a mouse model of airway hypersensitivity, we have identified a lung-
localized population of memory B cell that persists beyond the resolution of inflammation, but rapidly expands
upon allergen re-challenge. We hypothesize that these cells are bona fide lung-resident memory B cells that
elicit rapid local IgE responses and maintain long-term airway hypersensitivity. In this study, we will 1)
elucidate the mechanisms that recruit MBCs and maintain their long-term tissue residency in asthmatic lungs
using complementary immune phenotyping, single-cell transcriptomic and imaging analyses; and 2) investigate
how functionally lung-resident MBCs contribute to allergic asthma using in vivo depletion of circulating memory
B cells and adoptive transfer studies. This study on understanding the biology and functions of tissue-resident
memory B cells in asthmatic lungs is imperative, and may reveal new targets for treating and preventing the
progression of allergic asthma and other inflammatory lung conditions.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10413232
- **Project number:** 5R21AI159456-02
- **Recipient organization:** LOYOLA UNIVERSITY CHICAGO
- **Principal Investigator:** Yee Ling Wu
- **Activity code:** R21 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $185,725
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2021-06-01 → 2024-05-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10413232

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10413232, Investigation of memory B cell response in asthmatic lungs. (5R21AI159456-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10413232. Licensed CC0.

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