# BLRD Research Career Scientist Award Application

> **NIH VA IK6** · JAMES A. HALEY VA MEDICAL CENTER · 2023 · —

## Abstract

Project Summary
Trauma-induced inflammation and multiple organ failure are major causes of mortality and
morbidity in American soldiers and veterans. Gut barrier dysfunction plays a critical role in the
development of posttraumatic complications by providing the major site for plasma leakage and
bacterial translocation. Leaky gut, a consequence of gut barrier damage during trauma, has not been
treated effectively. The pathology of leaky gut has not been fully characterized and its cellular and
molecular mechanisms remain incompletely understood. The overall objective of this application is to
expand my current project towards a new phase to further investigate the molecular control of cell
specific mechanisms that contribute to leaky gut during trauma and subsequent acute lung injury.
We hypothesize that thermal injury induced inflammation in gut tissue activates focal adhesion
pathways in intestinal epithelium resulting in epithelial junction disassociation, therefore, impairing
gut epithelial barrier integrity. The project will focus on 1) to analyze the molecular mechanism of
FAK mediated gut epithelial barrier dysfunction; 2) to evaluate the role of FAK activation and
therapeutic potential of FAK inhibition; 3) to identify and characterize leaky gut-produced circulator
factors that contribute to lung injury. The study design employs complimentary in vivo, ex vivo, and
in vitro models that incorporate molecular and genetic approaches into physiological experiments
under clinically relevant trauma conditions. The significance of the study lies in its potential not only
to contribute to the advancement of gastrointestinal pathobiology, but also to have clinical
implications in the development of effective therapies or surgical interventions against gut barrier
injury. In addition, the funding will support PI’s effort to participate in the VA services and the
collaboration with VA physicians and scientists.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10693575
- **Project number:** 2IK6BX004210-06
- **Recipient organization:** JAMES A. HALEY VA MEDICAL CENTER
- **Principal Investigator:** MACK H WU
- **Activity code:** IK6 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** VA
- **Fiscal year:** 2023
- **Award amount:** —
- **Award type:** 2
- **Project period:** 2018-04-01 → 2028-03-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10693575

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10693575, BLRD Research Career Scientist Award Application (2IK6BX004210-06). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10693575. Licensed CC0.

---

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