Arkansas Center for Food Allergy Research (ArCOFAR)

Arkansas Children'S Hospital Res Inst, Little Rock AR

Investigators

Abstract

Despite significant research advances, many remaining questions must be addressed before global implementation of impactful therapeutic and prevention options for patients affected by food allergy can be realized. In response to NIAID’s RFA for the Consortium for Food Allergy Research (CoFAR), the Arkansas Center for Food Allergy Research (ArCOFAR) will build on its >30-year foundation of expertise and leadership in food allergy to address CoFAR’s overarching program goals. The ArCOFAR site is ideally positioned to function as a CoFAR Clinical Research Center (CRC). In addition to our extensive research experience, distinguished by key contributions in advancing food allergen immunotherapeutics for peanut allergy and eosinophilic gastrointestinal disorders (EGID), we will capitalize on our population’s distinctive geographic and patient characteristics. Namely, we serve a largely rural, dispersed population with more than 50% at high risk for poor health outcomes and earning below $50,000 annually and 33% with low educational attainment. Arkansas is also geographically positioned within the U.S. mid-south states that represent the endemic region of alpha gal syndrome (AGS), a tickborne disease manifested as food allergy. These geographic and population features of ArCOFAR stand to contribute significantly to the nationwide participant pool and to increase our understanding of allergy across a broad spectrum of individuals. Our efforts will be directed by the central hypothesis that ArCOFAR will measurably impact patients with food allergy and related disorders through expertly designed, innovative clinical trials using novel approaches that can advance translation of treatments and prevention strategies to practice, while training the next generation of researchers. Our overarching goal is to provide a comprehensive, collaborative research platform to measurably improve the lives of children and adults with food allergy and related disorders. The studies proposed in this application highlight ArCOFAR’s strengths with a new peanut peptide-based treatment approach to peanut allergy; investigation to identify diagnostic tools and biomarkers for the tickborne disease, AGS; evaluation of treatment response biomarkers in EGID; and integrative research in food science, nutrition, and food allergy. Our hypothesis will be tested by executing the following Specific Aims: 1) Expand therapeutic trials participation among patients with IgE-mediated food allergy and among those with AGS to include a spectrum of participants including those living in rural regions by designing and implementing novel, disease-impacting clinical trials; 2) Increase center-specific research into new areas of discovery that also have capacity for expansion to larger, multi-center investigation; and 3) Promote career development of new and early-career researchers in food allergy by linking established mentors and new investigators through engagement in network- and center-specific projects. This proposal’s outcomes will improve the health of children and adults with food allergy in Arkansas and beyond while advancing CoFAR’s mission to fundamentally transform food allergy research and treatment.