# Mechanisms of Pathogenesis in Giardiasis

> **NIH NIH R21** · GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY · 2022 · $195,000

## Abstract

Project Summary
Infection with Giardia intestinalis is one of the most common protozoan infections in the intestines of humans
worldwide. Recent work has identified chronic and recurrent Giardia infection as a major contributor to stunting
in children, and epithelial barrier disfunction is considered a key mechanism linking enteric infections with
malnutrition and stunting. Defects in intestinal barrier function have been observed in humans, animal models
and epithelial cell cultures infected with Giardia, but the mechanisms responsible for these defects remain
poorly described. In the first aim of this proposal we will test the role of specific host signaling pathways in
contributing to intestinal carrier disfunction using in vitro and animal models. In the second aim we will
determine if parasite proteases are virulence determinants that trigger pathology in vitro and in vivo. Blocking
these pathways could greatly reduce the pathology produced during giardiasis.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10495245
- **Project number:** 5R21AI166467-02
- **Recipient organization:** GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** STEVEN M SINGER
- **Activity code:** R21 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $195,000
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2021-09-24 → 2024-08-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10495245

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10495245, Mechanisms of Pathogenesis in Giardiasis (5R21AI166467-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10495245. Licensed CC0.

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