# Discovery of immunomodulatory gut microbes with MAGIC

> **NIH NIH R21** · COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY HEALTH SCIENCES · 2020 · $238,573

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
Commensal microbes have profound effects on human health. However, the nature of the commensal
microbes that stimulate and regulate the immune system of the host is largely unknown. Therefore, the
mechanisms by which such microbes engage host immunity are unknown. However, genetic tools to study
immune effects of the microbiota are currently not available. Moreover, it is unclear how many of the
microbiota species are amenable to genetic manipulation. Generation of TCR transgenic mice against
individual commensal microbes is an important approach to study such immune responses. However,
generation of individual TCR Tg mice against the hundreds of microbiota species is a monumental task.
Here, we propose an alternative approach, in which we will use a single TCR Tg mice to track T cell
responses to most of the microbiota and identify immunomodulatory commensal species. To this goal we
developed an approach for Metagenomic Alteration of Gut microbiome by In situ Conjugation, or MAGIC.
MAGIC leads to expression of exogenous proteins in a broad range of microbiota species simultaneously.
We will use this system to 1) create a biobank of genetically-modified commensal microbes that express
immunogenic proteins; 2) identify and isolate immunogenic commensals and 3) characterize the generated
T cell responses.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9941032
- **Project number:** 5R21AI146817-02
- **Recipient organization:** COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY HEALTH SCIENCES
- **Principal Investigator:** Ivaylo Ivanov Ivanov
- **Activity code:** R21 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $238,573
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2019-06-03 → 2023-05-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9941032

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9941032, Discovery of immunomodulatory gut microbes with MAGIC (5R21AI146817-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-27 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9941032. Licensed CC0.

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