# Developing a Chiropteran model to study the impact of thermal stress on antiviral immunity and inflammatory responses

> **NIH NIH K01** · COLORADO STATE UNIVERSITY · 2024 · $125,238

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT
The purpose of the proposed Career Development Award (K01 SERCA) is to provide Dr. Anna Fagre with
protected time and collaborative mentorship so that she can build a strong foundation for her career as an
independent investigator. Dr. Fagre’s proposed K01 career development training plan builds on >7 years of
experience studying bats (order Chiroptera), arthropod vectors, and arboviruses in both the field and the lab.
Importantly, it integrates additional training in three focus areas: (1) development of atypical animal models for
complex studies involving host-arbovirus-vector interactions, (2) advanced training in multi- omics analysis, and
(3) application of comparative approaches in immunology and stress physiology to Chiropteran models of
infection and disease. Dr. Fagre’s proposed K01 research outlines the development of a bat model to
characterize the impacts of thermal stress on host-arbovirus-vector interactions, incorporating novel datalogging
technologies to minimize animal handling while leveraging methodologies used in the fields of stress physiology
and environmental health. Dr. Fagre will explore these questions with 3 specific aims: (1) development of a
Chiropteran model for assessing innate immunity and inflammasome activation in bats exposed to thermal
stress, (2) characterization of ambient temperature’s impact on host-vector interactions in bats following
subdermal inoculation with mosquito salivary gland extract, and (3) quantification of ZIKV infection dynamics and
host responses at different temperatures in cell lines derived from taxonomically diverse bat species. The
anticipated results will contribute to ecoimmunology and ecophysiology studies by expanding our knowledge of
how heat stress affects bat immunology and host-virus interactions. In leading these studies, Dr. Fagre will be
uniquely poised to build out an independent research program interrogating the transmission dynamics of
emerging arboviruses, harnessing a combination of in vivo and in vitro methods supplemented with field-based
studies leveraging her past epidemiologic training. Not only will the proposed aims build a framework within
which to characterize the impact of environmental stress on host-virus-vector interactions and viral infection
outcomes, but results will aid in the identification of valuable diagnostic biomarkers for heat stress and viral
infection. The K01 SERCA award would provide Dr. Fagre with continued funding and dedicated time to
strengthen her research portfolio and build her own research program before applying for tenure-track faculty
positions.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10949504
- **Project number:** 1K01OD037645-01
- **Recipient organization:** COLORADO STATE UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** Anna Fagre
- **Activity code:** K01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $125,238
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2024-07-01 → 2029-06-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10949504

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10949504, Developing a Chiropteran model to study the impact of thermal stress on antiviral immunity and inflammatory responses (1K01OD037645-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-27 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10949504. Licensed CC0.

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