# Immunology

> **NIH NIH P30** · UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA · 2024 · $34,636

## Abstract

Immunology Program Summary
The overarching theme of the Immunology (IMM) Program is to define the basic mechanisms that control the
function and regulation of immunity so that immunotherapies that generate specific and durable antitumor
immune responses can be developed and optimized. Our Aims align with the Masonic Cancer Center (MCC)
Strategic Plan pillars of driving research discoveries and accelerating the path to cures: 1) Identify basic
mechanisms of immune cell regulation and function in the context of cancer and other chronic disease states
that form the foundation for immune-mediated clinical interventions. 2) Develop, implement, and optimize
cancer immunotherapies for clinical application.
Yoji Shimizu, PhD, and Jeffrey Miller, MD, co-lead the IMM Program. Dr. Shimizu's expertise is in basic
immunology and Dr. Miller's is in translational immunology; these synergize to accelerate the development and
optimization of cancer immunotherapies to realize the full potential of immunotherapy for cancer patients.
The IMM Program has 29 members, representing 11 departments and 3 schools or colleges. For the last
budget year, these members were supported by $13.1 million in cancer-relevant research funding (direct
costs), of which $1.85 million was from the National Cancer Institute. The Program's scientific
accomplishments over the past 5 years include new insights into resident memory T cells and the development
of a novel cancer clinical immunotherapy that targets them, the optimization and clinical testing of trispecific
engagers that specifically activate NK cells, an expanding NCI-funded program focused on developing
approaches to overcome the resistance of pancreatic cancer to immunotherapy by targeting both T cells and
myeloid cells, a preclinical mouse model to address the mechanism that leads to neurotoxicity during CAR T
cell therapy, and multiple approaches for optimizing and enhancing current cancer immunotherapies. Since
2018, Program members have published 349 papers, 24% of which resulted from intraprogrammatic
collaborations, 35% from interprogrammatic collaborations, and 57% from external collaborations.
MCC adds substantial value, such as the Cancer Research Translational Initiative, which allows IMM Program
members to continue to move fundamental, high-impact scientific discoveries directly into cancer models and
then on to clinical application. Program members also make extensive use of MCC Shared Resources and
actively participate in Translational Working Groups. MCC-supported Program meetings and events foster our
basic research and translational activities, and Program members are actively involved in community outreach
and engagement activities, particularly those that focus on education and clinical trial enrollment.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10768148
- **Project number:** 2P30CA077598-26
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA
- **Principal Investigator:** Jeffrey S. Miller
- **Activity code:** P30 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $34,636
- **Award type:** 2
- **Project period:** 1998-06-01 → 2029-01-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10768148

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10768148, Immunology (2P30CA077598-26). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-28 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10768148. Licensed CC0.

---

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