# Biomaterials for modulating the gut microbiome for immune activation

> **NIH NIH R01** · UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN AT ANN ARBOR · 2022 · $493,392

## Abstract

ABSTRACT
Despite the success of immune checkpoint blockers (ICBs), only a subset of patients responds to ICBs. In
addition, patients treated with ICBs exhibit high incidences of immune-related adverse events (irAEs). Thus,
there is a critical need for powerful yet safe combination approaches for immunotherapy. In particular, recent
studies have shown that the gut microbiome plays a crucial role in cancer patients' response rate to ICBs. The
current approaches to restore healthy gut microbiome include oral ingestion of defined probiotics or fecal
microbiota transplantation. However, it will be very challenging to develop these as a pharmaceutical product
due to scale-up manufacturing and quality control. To address these challenges, we are developing a new
technology that can improve cancer immunotherapy by targeting the colon and modulating the gut microbiome
in situ. We are developing an oral inulin-gel formulation that can modulate the gut microbiome and promote
strong anti-tumor T cell response. In preliminary studies, we have shown that our inulin-gel can significantly
augment the anti-tumor efficacy of anti-PD-1 ICB therapy without toxicity in multiple murine models. Here, we
will apply the multidisciplinary tools of pharmaceutics, bioengineering, and immunology to understand the
structure-function relationship among inulin-gel, colon-targeting, gut microbiome, and host immune responses.
As our inulin-gel is entirely based on FDA's generally regarded as safe (GRAS) list, our approach may offer a
powerful yet safe and facile strategy for augmenting the host immune responses in a safe and effective manner.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10466303
- **Project number:** 1R01CA271799-01
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN AT ANN ARBOR
- **Principal Investigator:** James J. Moon
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $493,392
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2022-05-01 → 2027-04-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10466303

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10466303, Biomaterials for modulating the gut microbiome for immune activation (1R01CA271799-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10466303. Licensed CC0.

---

*[NIH grants dataset](/datasets/nih-grants) · CC0 1.0*