$2.4M NIH Grant to Study Immune Role in Social Behavior

FAU has received a $2.4 million grant from the National Institutes of Health to explore how an immune-related receptor in neurons, interleukin-1 receptor type 1 (IL-1R1), influences brain function, behavior and psychiatric health. The project will examine how IL-1R1, traditionally studied for its role in inflammation, regulates neuronal activity, synaptic connections and circuit remodeling. Previous research from the team shows that neuronal IL-1R1 is essential for behavioral changes triggered by chronic social stress, suggesting the receptor plays a broader role in normal brain function than previously recognized.

The study will investigate where and when IL-1R1 is expressed in the brain, how it responds to experience, and how it shapes communication between neurons, particularly in hippocampal circuits involved in social discrimination. By demonstrating that IL-1R1 influences both the neurons that express it and their connected neighbors, the research redefines how immune signaling interacts with neural circuits. This work could transform understanding of neurological and neurodevelopmental disorders, opening new paths for therapies that target circuit-level dysfunction rather than symptoms alone, with implications for conditions such as autism and other disorders affecting social behavior.

“This research is particularly compelling for the field of neurological and neurodevelopmental disorders because it challenges the traditional separation between immune signaling and neural communication,” said Randy D. Blakely, Ph.D., project co-investigator, executive director of the FAU Stiles-Nicholson Brain Institute, the David J.S. Nicholson Distinguished Professor in Neuroscience, and a professor of biomedical science in the Schmidt College of Medicine. “By demonstrating that IL-1R1 actively shapes synaptic function and circuit connectivity, this work opens new conceptual pathways for understanding disorders in which brain networks and social behaviors are disrupted. These insights could ultimately guide more precise strategies for intervention that target circuit dysfunction rather than symptoms alone.”

Read the press release.