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Strategies to Improve Influenza Vaccine Efficacy in High-Risk Obese Individuals

Award Number: F31AI172424
ORGANIZATION: NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY & INFECTIOUS DISEASES
OPDIV: NIH
AWARD CLASS: DISCRETIONARY
AWARD ACTIVITY TYPE: FELLOWSHIP/SCHOLARSHIP/STUDENT LOANS
PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE START DATE: 09/01/2022
PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE END DATE: 08/31/2024

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Strategies to Improve Influenza Vaccine Efficacy in High-Risk Obese Individuals - PROJECT SUMMARY Vaccination is critical for controlling annual influenza epidemics and pandemics, but vaccines are less effective in high-risk populations such as people with obesity. After the 2009 H1N1 pandemic, obesity was identified as an independent high-risk factor for increased influenza disease severity. Work by our lab has shown that obese hosts are not only more susceptible than non-obese hosts to severe influenza disease but also less protected by adjuvanted vaccination. These disconcerting differences highlight the immediate need to develop influenza vaccines that better protect this high-risk group as global obesity rates rise steadily. Our laboratory is using established mouse models of obesity, induced either genetically or by diet, to address this need by investigating strategies to improve vaccine efficacy in obese hosts. We have preliminary data showing that we can rescue the decreased vaccine efficacy in our obese mice by introducing a weight loss intervention 4-weeks before vaccination. This proposal will 1) define the weight-loss “window” required for vaccine efficacy and 2) assess the changes in humoral responses that correlate with vaccine efficacy. This proposal will evaluate the mechanisms behind the increased vaccine efficacy associated with weight loss before immunization. If these mechanisms can be elucidated, adjuvants can be designed to target the same pathways to overcome the problems with the standard of care vaccines. The results of this research will have substantial translational implications for improving vaccine efficacy for other infectious diseases to protect our high-risk populations better and improve public health.


Issue Date FY	Funding FY	Legal Entity Name	Legal Entity Address	Legal Entity City	Legal Entity State	Legal Entity Zip Code	Legal Entity COUNTY	Legal Entity COUNTRY	Assistance Listing	Award Code	Budget Year	Action Date	Action Type	Action Amount

Issue Date FY: 2023 ( Subtotal = $31,694 )
2023	2023	ST. JUDE CHILDREN'S RESEARCH HOSPITAL GRADUATE SCHOOL OF BIOMEDICAL SCIENCES, LLC	262 DANNY THOMAS PL	MEMPHIS	TN	38105	SHELBY	USA	Allergy and Infectious Diseases Research	000	2	8/1/2023	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$31,694
														Subtotal = $31,694

Issue Date FY: 2022 ( Subtotal = $30,752 )
2022	2022	ST. JUDE CHILDREN'S RESEARCH HOSPITAL GRADUATE SCHOOL OF BIOMEDICAL SCIENCES, LLC	262 DANNY THOMAS PL	MEMPHIS	TN	38105	SHELBY	USA	Allergy and Infectious Diseases Research	001	1	6/16/2022	NEW	$0
2022	2022	ST. JUDE CHILDREN'S RESEARCH HOSPITAL GRADUATE SCHOOL OF BIOMEDICAL SCIENCES, LLC	262 DANNY THOMAS PL	MEMPHIS	TN	38105	SHELBY	USA	Allergy and Infectious Diseases Research	002	1	6/16/2022	NEW	$0
2022	2022	ST. JUDE CHILDREN'S RESEARCH HOSPITAL GRADUATE SCHOOL OF BIOMEDICAL SCIENCES, LLC	262 DANNY THOMAS PL	MEMPHIS	TN	38105	SHELBY	USA	Allergy and Infectious Diseases Research	000	1	6/7/2022	NEW	$30,752
														Subtotal = $30,752

Grand Total All Awards = $62,446

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Strategies to Improve Influenza Vaccine Efficacy in High-Risk Obese Individuals

Award Number: F31AI172424

ORGANIZATION: NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY & INFECTIOUS DISEASES

OPDIV: NIH

AWARD CLASS: DISCRETIONARY

AWARD ACTIVITY TYPE: FELLOWSHIP/SCHOLARSHIP/STUDENT LOANS

PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE START DATE: 09/01/2022

PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE END DATE: 08/31/2024

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