# Identification of BATF function and targets during NK cell activation

> **NIH NIH R21** · UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO · 2022 · $246,000

## Abstract

Project Summary
Natural killer (NK) cells play essential roles in the immune response to intracellular pathogens,
including viruses and bacteria, and form an important defense against malignant transformation
and metastasis. NK cells are activated when they detect an imbalance in the signals from
receptors on their cell surface, either a loss of inhibitory signals or activation through activating
receptors including cytokine receptors. Alterations in these signaling pathways impact the
transcriptional regulatory networks that contribute to NK cell activation and effector function. At
the present time there is a gap in our knowledge of the major transcription factors that are
impacted by these signaling pathways and how they modulate NK cell function. In this R21
application, we present data to support the hypothesis that Batf, the founding member of the
AP-1 family of transcription factors, is induced by proinflammatory cytokine signaling in NK cells
and impacts multiple aspects of the NK cell response. In aim 1, we will test the hypothesis that
Batf regulates key genes involved in NK cell expansion, survival, and effector function by
identifying direct Batf targets during the response to mouse cytomegalovirus. In aim 2, we will
test the hypothesis that Batf plays unique roles in different NK cell activating contexts by testing
the requirement for Batf in the NK cell response to metastatic melanoma and in a solid tumor
model that relies on NK cell migration and chemokine production. Taken together, these studies
will provide a broad view of the requirements for Batf in distinct NK cell activation contexts and
lead to the identification of Batf targets that underlie its essential functions.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10494220
- **Project number:** 5R21AI166947-02
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO
- **Principal Investigator:** BARBARA L. KEE
- **Activity code:** R21 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $246,000
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2021-09-23 → 2025-08-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10494220

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10494220, Identification of BATF function and targets during NK cell activation (5R21AI166947-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-29 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10494220. Licensed CC0.

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