Research Grants

TMS awards grant funding for mastocytosis and mast cell activation syndrome (MCAS) research. Below is a list of our award recipients from recent years. This page will be updated as new publications or presentations related to TMS-funded research are identified.

Open Grants

Grant Awards Currently Under Consideration

None available at this time.

TMS thanks all of those listed below and previous awardees for their dedication to advance our understanding of mast cell diseases.

Research Grant Awardees

2025 American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (AAAAI)/TMS Research Award in Mast Cell Disorders Including Mastocytosis and Mast Cell Activation Syndrome

This grant award was funded equally in partnership by TMS & AAAAI.

Award amount
$60,000

Award recipient
Eric T. Oliver MD, Johns Hopkins Hospital

Title
In Vivo Skin Mast Cell Responses via MRGPRX2

2023 American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (AAAAI)/TMS Research Award in Mast Cell Disorders Including Mastocytosis and Mast Cell Activation Syndrome

This grant award was funded equally in partnership by TMS & AAAAI.

Award amount
$60,000

Award recipient
Jennifer Nicoloro-SantaBarbara, PhD with Brigham and Women’s Hospital (BWH)

Title
Behavioral and biological mechanism underlying depression in mast cell disorders.

2021 American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (AAAAI)/TMS Research Award in Mast Cell Disorders Including Mastocytosis and Mast Cell Activation Syndrome

This grant award was funded equally in partnership by TMS & AAAAI.

Award amount
$60,000

Award recipient
Dr. Daniel Dwyer with Brigham and Women’s Hospital (BWH)

Title
Single-cell characterization of cutaneous mast cells in mastocytosis and hereditary alpha-tryptasemia.

2019 American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (AAAAI)/TMS Research Award in Mast Cell Disorders Including Mastocytosis and Mast Cell Activation Syndrome

This grant award was funded equally in partnership by TMS & AAAAI.

Award amount
$60,000

Award recipient
Matthew Hamilton, MD
Brigham and Women’s Hospital Mastocytosis Center
Harvard University, Boston, MA

Co-investigators
Mariana Castells, MD, PhD
Peter Novak, MD, PhD
Olga Pozdnyakova, MD, PhD
Sarah Glover, DO, of the University of Mississippi

Title
A Novel Approach to Characterize and Focus Treatment in Patients with MCAS and Dysautonomia

2018 TMS Research Award in Pediatric Mastocytosis, Including Related Disorders of Pediatric Mast Cell Activation – Catalano Family Grant Through Wyatt’s Warriors

This grant award was funded by TMS, thanks to a generous donation from the Catalano Family through Wyatt’s Warriors.

Award amount
$50,000

Award recipient
Anupama Ravi, MD
Mayo Clinic Program for the Study of Mast Cell and Eosinophil Disorders
Division of Pediatric Allergy and Immunology
Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN

Co-investigators
Joseph Butterfield, MD
Jeffrey Meeusen, PhD
Leslie Donato, PhD
Angela Mattke, MD
Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN

Title
Excretion of Mast Cell Mediators in Pediatric Mastocytosis and Mast Cell Activation Syndrome (MCAS)

2018 TMS Research Award in Pediatric Mastocytosis, Including Related Disorders of Pediatric Mast Cell Activation – Karen and Jim Houghton Grant

This grant award was funded by TMS, thanks to a generous donation from Karen and Jim Houghton.

Award amount
$60,000

Award recipient
Olivier Hermine, MD, PhD, and Leila Maouche Chrétien, PhD
Necker Children’s Hospital/Imagine Institute, National Reference Center of Mastocytosis, Paris, France

Title
Translational Studies on Pediatric Mastocytosis for Identification of New Pathways of Transformation and of New Potentially Effective Treatment of Both Pediatric and Adult Mastocytosis

Resulting Publications/Presentations

L. Polivka, V. Parietti, J. Bruneau, E. Soucie, M. Madrange, E. Bayard, R. Rignault, D. Canioni, S. Fraitag, L. Lhermitte, M. Feroul, M. Tissandier, J. Rossignol, L. Frenzel, N. Cagnard, C. Meni, H. Bouktit, A.-F. Collange, C. Gougoula, M. Parisot, B. Bader-Meunier, C. Livideanu, C. Laurent, M. Arock, S. Hadj-Rabia, U. Rüther, P. Dubreuil, C. Bodemer, O. Hermine, L. Maouche-Chrétien,
The association of Greig syndrome and mastocytosis reveals the involvement of the hedgehog pathway in advanced mastocytosis, Blood, Volume 138, Issue 23, 2021, Pages 2396-2407

2018 TMS Research Award in Pediatric Mastocytosis, Including Related Disorders of Pediatric Mast Cell Activation – Karen and Jim Houghton Grant

This grant award was funded by TMS, thanks to a generous donation from Karen and Jim Houghton.

Award amount
$60,000

Award recipient
Matthew Giannetti, MD

Co-investigator
Mariana Castells, MD, PhD
Department of Rheumatology, Allergy, and Immunology
Center of Excellence for Mastocytosis
Brigham and Women’s Hospital
Boston, MA

Title
Identification of Novel Pathways in the Transcriptome of Human Mast Cells from Children and Adults with Cutaneous Mastocytosis

2017 TMS/AAAAI Research Award in Mastocytosis and/or Mast Cell Activation Syndrome

This grant award is a 1 year joint offering from TMS and the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (AAAAI), with each organization contributing $30,000.

Award amount
$60,000

Award recipient
Jeremy O’Sullivan, PhD
Division of Allergy/Immunology
Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine

Title
Targeting Mast Cells through Siglec-6

2015 TMS/Artrusttm Research Award in Mastocytosis and/or Mast Cell Activation Syndrome

This grant award was a 1 year joint offering from TMS and the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology, with each organization contributing $30,000.

Award amount
$60,000

Award recipient
Jonathan Lyons, MD
Assistant Clinical Investigator
Genetics and Pathogenesis Section
Laboratory of Allergic Diseases
National Institute of Allergy & Infectious Diseases/National Institutes of Health

Title
Convergence of Autosomal Dominant Familial Tryptasemia and Mast Cell Associated Disorders

Resulting Publication(s)/Presentation(s)
Lyons JJ, Yu X, Hughes JD, Le QT, Jamil A, Bai Y, et al. Elevated basal serum tryptase identifies a multisystem disorder associated with increased TPSAB1 copy number. Nat Genet. 2016 Dec;48(12):1564-9.

Lyons JJ, Stotz SC, Chovanec J, Liu Y, Lewis KL, Nelson C, DiMaggio T, Jones N, Stone KD, Sung H, Biesecker LG, Colicos MA, Milner JD. A common haplotype containing functional CACNA1H variants is frequently coinherited with increased TPSAB1 copy number. Genet Med. Sep 21 2017.

2015 TMS Research Award in Mastocytosis and Mast Cell Activation Syndrome

This grant award was funded by TMS.

Award amount
$10,000

Award recipient
Celalettin Ustun, MD
Associate Professor, Department of Medicine
Division of Hematology, Oncology and Transplantation
University of Minnesota

Title
Mastocytosis in Acute Myelogenous Leukemia (AML) with Core Binding Factors (CBF)

Resulting Publication(s)/Presentation(s)
13th Annual Meeting of the European Competence Network on Mastocytosis –Munich, Germany, October 8-10, 2015

Title
Occult Mastocytosis and KIT D816V in CBF AML
Ustun C, Morgan E, Moodie EEM, Pullarkat S, Yeung C, et al. Core-binding factor acute myeloid leukemia with t(8;21): Risk factors and a novel scoring system (I-CBFit). Cancer Med. 2018; 1-9.

2014 TMS/Artrust™ Research Award in Mastocytosis and/or Mast Cell Activation Syndrome

This grant award was a 1 year joint offering from TMS and the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology, with each organization contributing $30,000.

Award amount
$60,000

Award recipient
Tanya Laidlaw, MD
Assistant Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School
Associate Physician, Division of Rheumatology, Immunology, and Allergy, Brigham and Women’s Hospital

Title
Characterization of a Novel Growth and Survival Factor for Human Mast Cells

2014 TMS/Mastokids Research Award in Pediatric Mastocytosis and Pediatric Mast Cell Activation Syndrome

This grant award was a joint offering from TMS and Mastokids, with $20,000 contributed from TMS and $20,000 from Mastokids.

Award amount
$40,000

Award recipient
Richard Stevens, PhD, Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School

Collaborators
Mariana Castells, MD, PhD, Brigham and Women’s Hospital
Matthew Hamilton, MD, Brigham and Women’s Hospital
(current Principal Investigator of grant)
Steven Krilis, MD, PhD, University New South Wales (AUS)

Title
Importance of hTryptase-beta in Pediatric Mast Cell Disorders

Resulting Publication(s)/Presentation(s)
CD117+ Dendritic and Mast Cells Are Dependent on RasGRP4 to Function as Accessory Cells for Optimal Natural Killer Cell-Mediated Responses to Lipopolysaccharide. Zhou S, Tanaka K, O’Keeffe M, Qi M, El-Assaad F, Weaver JC, et al. PLoS One. 2016 Mar 16;11(3)

2014 TMS Research Award in Mastocytosis and Mast Cell Activation Syndrome

This grant award was funded by TMS.

Award amount
$25,000

Award recipient
Theoharis Theoharides, MS, PhD, MD
Professor of Pharmacology, Internal Medicine (Allergy) and Biochemistry
Tufts University, School of Medicine

Title
Levels of CRH, NT, SP and IL-33 in the serum of systemic mastocytosis and mast cell activation syndrome patients

2013 TMS/Mastokids Research Award in Pediatric Mastocytosis and Pediatric Mast Cell Activation Syndrome

This grant award was a joint offering from TMS and Mastokids, with $35,000 contributed from TMS and $25,000 from Mastokids.

Award amount
$60,000

Award recipient
Lawrence Schwartz, MD, PhD
Professor of Medicine, Microbiology & Immunology, & Pathology
Department of Internal Medicine
Virginia Commonwealth University

Title
Monocyte Derived Immunosupressant Cells Inhibit Immune Regulation of Mast Cells in Mastocytosis

2011 TMS Research Award

This grant award was funded by TMS.

Award amount
$52,516

Award recipient
Lawrence Afrin, MD
Associate Professor of Medicine
Division of Hematology/Oncology
Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC)
(Currently Division of Hematology, Oncology, and Transplantation, University of Minnesota)

Collaborators
John Lazarchick, MD, MUSC
Sally Self, M.D., MUSC
Elizabeth Hill, Ph.D., MUSC

Title
Characterization of Certain Peripheral Blood Cell Abnormalities Potentially Aiding the Diagnosis of Mast Cell Activation Syndrome (MCAS)

Resulting Publication(s)/Presentation(s)
Afrin LB, Self S, Menk J, Lazarchick J. Characterization of Mast Cell Activation Syndrome. Am J Med Sci 2017, in press, DOI: 10.1016/j.amjms.2016.12.013.

Afrin LB, Self S, Menk J, Lazarchick J. Characterization of Mast Cell Activation Syndrome. Blood 2016 128:3683.

Afrin LB, Butterfield JH, Raithel M, Molderings GJ. Often seen, rarely recognized: mast cell activation disease–a guide to diagnosis and therapeutic options. Ann Med. 2016;48(3):190-201.

Afrin LB, Wan Z, Hill EG. Characterization Of Common Blood Test Abnormalities Potentially Aiding Diagnosis Of Mast Cell Activation Syndrome: A Preliminary Analysis. Blood 2013 122:5240.

2010 TMS Research Award

This grant award was funded by TMS.

Award amount
$50,000

Award recipient
Peter Valent, MD
Karoline Gleixner, MD
Medical University of Vienna

Title
Identification of a new target pathway in neoplastic mast cells as basis for the design of a novel pharmacologic concept

Resulting Publication(s)/Presentation(s)
Gleixner KV, Mayerhofer M, Cerny-Reiterer S, Hormann G, Rix U, Bennett KL, et al. KIT-D816V-independent oncogenic signaling in neoplastic cells in systemic mastocytosis: role of Lyn and Btk activation and disruption by dasatinib and bosutinib. Blood. 2011 Aug 18;118(7):1885-98.

2010 TMS Research Award

This grant award was funded by TMS.

Award amount
$9,756

Award recipients
Jonathan Smith, MD
Melissa Snyder, PhD
Michael Cutrer, MD
Joseph Butterfield, MD
Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN

Title
Cerebrospinal Fluid Tryptase and Neuropsychiatric Symptoms in Systemic Mastocytosis

Resulting Publication(s)/Presentation(s)
Smith JH, Snyder MR, Weiler CR, Cutrer FM, Butterfield JH. Lack of evidence for intrathecal tryptase synthesis in patients with systemic mastocytosis. J Allergy Clin Immunol. 2013 Oct;132(4):996-7.

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Research Grants

TMS awards grant funding for mastocytosis and mast cell activation syndrome (MCAS) research. Below is a list of our award recipients from recent years. This page will be updated as new publications or presentations related to TMS-funded research are identified.

Open Grants

Grant Awards Currently Under Consideration

2025 American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (AAAAI)/TMS Research Award in Mast Cell Disorders Including Mastocytosis and Mast Cell Activation Syndrome

2023 American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (AAAAI)/TMS Research Award in Mast Cell Disorders Including Mastocytosis and Mast Cell Activation Syndrome

2021 American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (AAAAI)/TMS Research Award in Mast Cell Disorders Including Mastocytosis and Mast Cell Activation Syndrome

2019 American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (AAAAI)/TMS Research Award in Mast Cell Disorders Including Mastocytosis and Mast Cell Activation Syndrome

2018 TMS Research Award in Pediatric Mastocytosis, Including Related Disorders of Pediatric Mast Cell Activation – Catalano Family Grant Through Wyatt’s Warriors

2018 TMS Research Award in Pediatric Mastocytosis, Including Related Disorders of Pediatric Mast Cell Activation – Karen and Jim Houghton Grant

2018 TMS Research Award in Pediatric Mastocytosis, Including Related Disorders of Pediatric Mast Cell Activation – Karen and Jim Houghton Grant

2017 TMS/AAAAI Research Award in Mastocytosis and/or Mast Cell Activation Syndrome

2015 TMS/Artrusttm Research Award in Mastocytosis and/or Mast Cell Activation Syndrome

2015 TMS Research Award in Mastocytosis and Mast Cell Activation Syndrome

2014 TMS/Artrust™ Research Award in Mastocytosis and/or Mast Cell Activation Syndrome

2014 TMS/Mastokids Research Award in Pediatric Mastocytosis and Pediatric Mast Cell Activation Syndrome

2014 TMS Research Award in Mastocytosis and Mast Cell Activation Syndrome

2013 TMS/Mastokids Research Award in Pediatric Mastocytosis and Pediatric Mast Cell Activation Syndrome

2011 TMS Research Award

2010 TMS Research Award

2010 TMS Research Award

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