JCVI wins $200,000 grant to study childhood leukemia therapy

The J. Craig Venter Institute received a two-year, $200,000 St. Baldrick’s Foundation grant to advance research on MLL-rearranged leukemias in children. The project aims to test a dual-action approach that could both kill leukemia cells and strengthen the immune response.

Why it matters: - MLL-rearranged leukemias are among the most common childhood leukemias and are linked to poor to intermediate outcomes. - Current treatments leave an urgent need for better options for young patients. - The research aims to lay groundwork for a new therapy that could improve outcomes in pediatric blood cancer.

What happened: - The J. Craig Venter Institute announced a two-year, $200,000 Emily Beazley Kures for Kids Fund St. Baldrick’s Research Grant. - The award is part of St. Baldrick’s 2026 grant cycle. - Associate Professor Nan Zhu, Ph.D., will lead the research at JCVI in La Jolla, California. - The grant supports work on new therapies for MLL-rearranged leukemias in children.

The details: - Zhu’s team is studying the BAF chromatin remodeling complex, which helps regulate gene activity and supports the survival of MLL-rearranged leukemia cells. - The project builds on pilot findings and prior published research showing that loss of the BAF complex can boost anti-tumor immunity. - The team hypothesizes that targeting the BAF complex could create a dual effect: directly eliminating leukemia cells and enhancing the body’s immune response. - The research will use laboratory models that better reflect how leukemia behaves in the body, including models developed from human patient samples. - Zhu has spent nearly 20 years working in leukemia research. - JCVI said the work is designed to provide the rationale and foundational scientific evidence needed to move a novel dual-action therapy targeting the BAF complex in pediatric MLL-rearranged AML toward future clinical development.

Between the lines: - The project reflects a broader shift toward therapies that combine direct tumor targeting with immune activation. - St. Baldrick’s funding gives early-stage research room to generate the evidence needed before clinical testing. - JCVI said the award underscores the role of philanthropy in supporting high-impact childhood cancer science. - St. Baldrick’s has invested more than $380 million in grants since it was founded.

What's next: - Zhu’s team will test the approach in preclinical models and patient-derived systems. - JCVI and Zhu plan to share findings with the pediatric oncology community as the work advances. - If the data hold up, the research could support future clinical development of a new treatment strategy for pediatric MLL-rearranged AML. - JCVI said it expects continued collaboration with St. Baldrick’s Foundation as the project progresses.

The bottom line: - The grant gives JCVI a shot at turning a long-running leukemia program into a potential dual-action therapy for some of the hardest-to-treat childhood cancers.