Introduction

Therapeutic goals and clinical guidelines in Crohn’s disease (CD) have evolved to include endoscopic outcomes being a key prognostic parameter in disease management. STRIDE-II guidelines comprise of clinical and patient-reported outcome remission, along with biomarker normalization and endoscopic healing. While available publications have correlated achievement of endoscopic response with long-term outcomes, few if any have adjusted for clinical remission status. Moreover, most of the data comes from patients treated with immunomodulators and/or TNFs. The objective of this analysis was to assess the impact of endoscopic response at the end of maintenance and long-term outcomes while adjusting for clinical remission status at maintenance.

Aims & Methods

Data from two randomized clinical trials (GALAXI-1, NCT03466411 and IM-UNITI, NCT01369355) were pooled to assess the impact of endoscopic response at 1 year on long-term patient relevant outcomes including clinical response, clinical remission, quality of life as assessed by the Inflammatory Bowel Disease Questionnaire (IBDQ), and risk for hospitalizations/surgeries. This post-hoc analysis assessed endoscopic response at the end of maintenance (~48 weeks) and patient relevant outcomes in the long-term extension (LTE) duration (~96 weeks). Patients without LTE outcome data and placebo treated patients were excluded. Multivariate analyses with trial as a random effect were conducted and adjusted for treatment arm during maintenance, clinical remission status at end of maintenance (EOM), and endoscopic response at EOM.

Results

A total of 461 patients had available endoscopy and clinical remission status at EOM (IM-UNITI, N=177; GALAXI-1, N=284). The number of patients with available LTE outcomes ranged from 290 (IBDQ remission) to 383 (clinical remission/clinical response). Endoscopic response at EOM was significantly associated with higher odds of LTE clinical remission and IBDQ remission with ORs of 1.91 and 1.99 respectively, with corresponding p values below 0.05. Endoscopic response at EOM was also associated with lower odds of LTE C-reactive Protein abnormality (OR=0.46, p<0.005), a marker of inflammation and disease activity. Lastly, a greater percentage of patients without endoscopic response at EOM experienced hospitalizations/surgeries though the difference was not significant due to low event counts (16% versus 9%, p=0.1237).

Conclusion

This analysis uses clinical data from robust trials and adjusted for patients’ clinical remission status at the end of maintenance to isolate the benefit of endoscopic response in predicting long-term outcomes. Endoscopic response is significantly associated with more patients reaching clinical remission and better quality of life. Further investigation in large datasets with longer follow-up is needed to better understand whether measures of endoscopic improvement are also good surrogates for reductions in hospitalizations and surgeries.

Disclosure

Janssen Global Services provided funding for this research and I am an employee of Janssen

Introduction

Congenital Diarrhea and Enteropathies (CODEs) pose significant challenge for diagnosis and management. Genetic sequencing for children with CODEs has important implication in early diagnosis.

Aims & Methods

Among children with chronic diarrhea those suspected to have CODEs clinically and endoscopically during the period of March 2023 to Feb 2024 were included.
Clinical profile, endoscopic, histological and genetic analysis were studied in all children with suspected CODES.

Results

Total 15(n=15) cases were included. Overall male preponderance 80%(n=12) was noted. Age at onset ranged from 2days of life to 15months with mean age of 4months. Of them, 10(66%) children had watery diarrhea, 4(26%) children had bloody diarrhea and 1(6.6%) child had fatty diarrhea.
Endoscopic and histological yield in CODES children were found in 40%(n=4) and 30%(n=3) respectively in children with watery diarrhea, and in all children with fatty or bloody diarrhea.
Out of 10 children with watery diarrhea two children had syndromic facies, woolly hair and café-u-lait spots were diagnosed as Syndromic Diarrhea-Trichohepaticoenetric Syndrome(THES). 3 of them had protein losing enteropathy(PLE) with two among 3 showing normal endoscopy and biopsy,finally turned out to be enterokinase deficiency, while one child with endoscopically viewed whitish speckled mucosa with patchy vacuolated surface on histology had DGAT 1 mutation. Two children with watery diarrhoea had microvillous atrophy(MYO5B) and one with severe watery diarrhea had NEUROG3 mutation. Glucose galactose malabsorption (GGM), and Congenital Tufting Enteropathy (CTE) were seen in other two children. Among children with bloody diarrhea, two had proctocolitis on histology confirming Very Early Onset Inflammatory Bowel Disease(VEO-IBD) with genetic mutation showing CARMIL 2 and RIPK1 mutation. Two children with bloody diarrhoea suspected to have IBD had chronic colitis with thrombotic complications suggesting CD55 deficiency with Hyperactivation of complement, Angiopathic thrombosis, and PLE (CHAPLE syndrome). child with fatty diarrhoea with endoscopic findings suggestive of intestinal lymphangiectasia and histology of duodenal biopsy showing lipid droplets was clinically and genetically diagnosed Abetalipoproteinemia and started on fat free diet with MCT oil and vitamin A,D,E,K supplements. Genomic analysis are the final stand of diagnosing CODES due to the overlap of the clinical phenotypes and lack of appropriate biomarkers.Genetic Analysis had 100% yield when CODES were suspected. Overall mortality rate was 26%(n=4) in 1year follow-up in our study group.

Conclusion

Single gene disorders are common among CODEs patients. Early Genetic testing helps in accurate diagnosis and initiating appropriate therapy as endoscopy and histology has poor yield.

References

•Lee, Kun Song et al. “How to do in persistent diarrhea of children?: concepts and treatments of chronic diarrhea.” Pediatric gastroenterology, hepatology & nutrition vol. 15,4 (2012): 229-36. doi:10.5223/pghn.2012.15.4.229
•Thiagarajah, Jay R et al. “Advances in Evaluation of Chronic Diarrhea in Infants.” Gastroenterology vol. 154,8 (2018): 2045-2059.e6. doi:10.1053/j.gastro.2018.03.067
•Bourgeois, P., Esteve, C., Chaix, C., Beroud, C., Levy, N., THES Clinical Consortium, Fabre, A., Badens, C. Tricho-hepato-enteric syndrome mutation update: mutations spectrum of TTC37 and SKIV2L, clinical analysis and future prospects. Hum. Mutat. 39: 774-789, 2018

Introduction

Inflammatory cells and cytokines play an instrumental role in the pathogenesis and disease course of ulcerative colitis (UC) and are thus accepted therapeutic targets. NX-13 is a first-in-class, orally active, once-daily, gut-selective NLRX1 agonist in development for UC. NLRX1 is a mitochondrial associated protein with a novel, bimodal, immunometabolic mechanism which upregulates mitochondrial metabolism, reduces oxidative stress, and decreases pro-inflammatory cell differentiation and cytokine release broadly in mouse models of IBD¹. NX-13 was well tolerated and showed gut selectivity with low systemic drug exposure in Phase 1 studies reported previously^2,3. We now present data from the phase 1b study describing changes in tissue cytokine levels and related to clinical response.

Aims & Methods

In this double-blind phase 1B trial (NCT04862741)³, 36 patients with active UC (Total Mayo Score 4-10; Mayo endoscopic subscore 2-3) were randomly assigned to NX-13 250mg Immediate Release (IR), 500mg IR, 500mg Delayed Release (DR) or Placebo QD for 4 weeks. Protein levels of IFNγ, IL-10, IL-12(p40), IL-17, IL-4, IL-6, IL-8, MCP1, and TNFα in colonic tissue from NX-13 treated patients collected at screening (baseline) and week 4 of treatment were determined by Human Cytokine/Chemokine Panel – Immunology Multiplex Assay (Millipore Sigma) normalized to total protein concentrations. Patients from all NX-13 dose groups with paired baseline and week 4 samples (n=18) were included in this analysis. Mann-Whitney U testing was used for comparisons between responders (Resp) and non-responders (NR).

Results

Baseline cytokines levels were not different between Resp (change from baseline of at least –3, or –30% in total Mayo Score) and NR. NX-13 treatment resulted in a decrease of multiple proinflammatory cytokines at week 4 compared to baseline in most patients, and especially in Resp. compared to NR at week 4 (Table 1). Primarily, the reduction (% change from baseline) of Th1 cytokines IL-12(p40) and IFNγ was greater in NX-13 treated patients with clinical response compared to NR, resulting in significantly lower values in Resp compared to NR at the end of the 4-week study. Similarly, IL-6 also tended to be lower among Resp. after 4 weeks of treatment with NX-13. Additionally, Th2 cytokine IL-4 values were significantly lower after 4 weeks of NX-13 in patients in clinical response compared to NR. Myeloid cell recruitment may also have been affected by cytokine changes induced by NX-13 as IL-8 and MCP levels were lower in clinical Resp. Reduced myeloid cell recruitment is consistent with higher levels of histologic remission in NX-13 treated patients³.

Conclusion

Broad changes in tissue cytokine expression were specifically observed in patients that responded to NX-13- after 4 weeks of treatment, compared to non-responders. These changes mirror those seen in preclinical mouse colitis models where a broad array of cytokines is reduced¹. The early onset of cytokine shifts associated with clinical response to NX-13 at week 4 is notable and will be assessed in the ongoing phase 2 NEXUS study in patients with moderate to severe UC (NCT05785715).

References

¹Leber, et al. J Immunol 203(12); ²Leber, et al. UEGW J 9(Supp); ³Verstockt, et al. JCC epub 11NOV2023

Disclosure

BS has received grant support from Pfizer (to institution); served as a consultant (served as a representative of Charité) for AbbVie, Arena, BMS, Boehringer, Celgene, Endpoint Health, Falk, Galapagos, Janssen, Landos, Lilly, Pfizer, PredictImmune, and Takeda; and has received speaker’s fees (served as a representative of Charité) from AbbVie, CED Service GmbH, Falk, Ferring, Galapagos, Janssen, Lilly, Pfizer, and Takeda; support for attending meetings/travel from Falk; and served as president of ECCO. | SV has received grants from AbbVie, J&J, Pfizer, Takeda, and Galapagos; consulting and/or speaking fees from AbbVie, Abivax, AbolerIS Pharma, AgomAb, Alimentiv, Arena Pharmaceuticals, AstraZeneca, Avaxia, BMS, Boehringer Ingelheim, Celgene, CVasThera, Cytoki Pharma, Dr Falk Pharma, Ferring, Galapagos, Genentech-Roche, Gilead, GSK, Hospira, Imidomics, Janssen, J&J, Lilly, Materia Prima, MiroBio, Morphic, MrMHealth, Mundipharma, MSD, Pfizer, Prodigest, Progenity, Prometheus, Robarts Clinical Trials, Second Genome, Shire, Surrozen, Takeda, Theravance, Tillots Pharma AG, and Zealand Pharma. | AY reports consulting fees from Takeda, Prometheus Labs, Arena Pharmaceuticals, and Bristol Myers Squibb; and speaker bureau fees from Bristol Myers Squibb. | SS has received personal fees from AbbVie, Amgen, Arena Pharmaceuticals, Bristol Myers Squibb, Boehringer Ingelheim, Celltrion, Dr Falk Pharma, Ferring, Fresenius, Galapagos, Genentech, GSK, Gilead, I-MAB Biopharma, Janssen, Lilly, Merck, Novartis-Sandoz, Pfizer, Protagonist, Takeda, and Theravance. | SD reports consultancy fees from AbbVie, Alimentiv, Allergan, Amgen, AstraZeneca, Athos Therapeutics, Biogen, Boehringer Ingelheim, Bristol Myers Squibb, Celgene, Celltrion, Dr Falk Pharma, Eli Lilly, Enthera, Ferring Pharmaceuticals Inc., Gilead, Hospira, Inotrem, Janssen, Johnson & Johnson, MSD, Mundipharma, Mylan, Pfizer, Roche, Sandoz, Sublimity Therapeutics, Takeda, TiGenix, UCB Inc., and Vifor; he reports lecture fees from Abbvie, Amgen, Ferring Pharmaceuticals Inc., Gilead, Janssen, Mylan, Pfizer, and Takeda. | RM is an employee of Landos. | FC is an employee of Landos. | BV has received grants from Abbvie, Biora Therapeutics, Landos, Pfizer, Sossei Heptares, and Takeda; Speaker’s fees from Abbvie, Biogen, Bristol Myers Squibb, Celltrion, Chiesi, Falk, Ferring, Galapagos, Janssen, MSD, Pfizer, R-Biopharm, Takeda, Truvion and Viatris. Consultancy fees from Abbvie, Alimentiv, Applied Strategic, Atheneum, Biora Therapeutics, Bristol Myers Squibb, Galapagos, Guidepoint, Landos, Mylan, Inotrem, Ipsos, Janssen, Progenity, Sandoz, Sosei Heptares, Takeda, Tillots Pharma and Viatris. | MCD reports consulting fees from AbbVie, Arena, Bristol Myers Squibb, Celgene, Eli Lilly, Genentech, Gilead, Janssen, Pfizer, Prometheus Labs, and Takeda; and is founder and a shareholder of Trellus Health.

Introduction

Gastric injury induces metaplasia is based on parietal cells loss and reprogramming chief cells into proliferative, mucin-rich spasmolytic polypeptide-expressing metaplasia (SPEM) cells. Previously, we demonstrated that parietal cell-selective Slc26a9 deficiency in mice promotes the development of SPEM and progress to gastric intraepithelial neoplasia in mice (Liu et al., Cellular oncology; 2022; Deng et al., DDW2023). However, the exact role of Slc26a9 in injury-induced metaplasia is need further investigated.

Aims & Methods

We used immunostaining to characterize the expression pattern of Slc26a9 during murine gastric development, homeostasis, and injury in homeostasis, after conditionial genetic deletion of Slc26a9. Furthermore, to reveal the functional role of Slc26a9, Injury-induced metaplasia was established in Slc26a9^fl/fl mice and Slc26a9^fl/fl/Atp4b-Cre mice with high-dose tamoxifen.

Results

Mice with parietal cell selective Slc26a9 deficiency first developed spontaneous parietal cell damage, which subsequently led to SPEM. Parietal cell injury was associated with the release of typical pyroptosis factors, including NRLP3, Caspase-1, ASC, GasderminD, IL-1β and IL-18. At the same time, SLC26A9 colocalized with caspase1, NLRP3, GSDMD, and NLRP3 and GSDMD, and produced a large number of reactive oxygen species (ROS), markers of mitochondrial damage, thereby expanding membrane perforation of GSDMD-N fragments and amplifying inflammasome-mediated parietic cell pyrodeath. At the same time, electron microscopy showed that after the knockout of the Slc26a9 gene, the mitochondria of the murine wall cells were obviously swollen, the cell membrane structure was blurred and damaged, the matrix was more dissolved, the ridge was broken and disappeared, and there were many bubble protrusions. This suggests that parietal cell specific SLC26A9 gene deletion may lead to parietal cell scorch death through mitochondrial damage mediated by GSDMD. However, with a large number of parietal cell damage and loss, gastric hypergastrinemia stimulates Tuft cell proliferation and migration to the gastric mucosa for colonization, and secretes a series of alarm hormones such as IL-25, IL-33, HMGB1. Moreover, ILC2 cell secretory factors such as IL-17RA and IL-17RB, GATA3, CD90, CD25 were up-regulated. M2 macrophage polarization-related markers such as Arg1, Fizz1, Ym1, Klf4 and secreted chemokines such as CCL24 and CCL22 were significantly up-regulated. The immunofluorescence staining of F4/80+ and CD163+ was significantly increased. This suggests that the spontaneous injury of parietal cells caused by the deletion of SLC26A9 gene in gastric parietal cells may lead to gastric dysfunction (hypoacid and hypergastrinemia) and mucosal epithelial injury, which may promote the occurrence of SPEM through IL-25 mediating the activation of ILC2 cells to regulate the cellular immune mechanism of macrophage M2 polarization.

Conclusion

Slc26a9 target deletion in parietal cells leads to spontaneous damage and scorch death of parietal cells, which is the core target and cell origin of initiating SPEM. After parietal cell specific Slc26a9 gene deletion leads to spontaneous injury of parietal cells, gastric dysfunction and mucosal injury result in the release of alarm hormone IL-25, which promotes the development of SPEM by activating IL-25-ILC2-macrophage M2 polarization axis. Slc26a9 plays an important protective role in stabilizing gastric epithelial cell differentiation and gastric mucosal immune homeostasis.

Disclosure

No conflict of interest

Clinical Case Summary

A 70-year-old patient with diabetes mellitus and cholecystectomy performed six months earlier was admitted to the emergency department for generalized abdominal pain, hyporexia and weight loss.
An abdominal CT scan showed a solid-cystic pancreatic lesion suggestive of mucinous neoplasia, together with peritoneal nodules in the right paracolic gout. In view of the suspicion of malignancy, an echoendoscopy with fine needle aspiration puncture (EUS-FNA) was performed, identifying an irregular lesion with heterogeneous and hypovascular ultrastructure in the pancreatic neck-body and a discrete dilatation of the main pancreatic duct. Finally, the histological study didn´t show neoplastic cells.
Suddenly the patient experienced a clinical worsening with severe pain and high fever. Laboratory tests showed a progressive increase in C-reactive protein and leukocytosis with left shift. In a control CT scan, a reduction in the size of the pancreatic lesion is observed, together with an increase in the peritoneal lesions which present a polyglobulated contour, hypercapillary margins and rarefaction of the surrounding fat. These finding suggesting the presence of peritoneal abscesses secondary to dropped gallstones. After broad-spectrum antibiotic therapy, the intra-abdominal abscesses improved radiologically, but the collection persisted in the right posterior pararenal space which was drained under ultrasound control with subsequent disappearance of fever and normalization of analytical parameters.
Dropped gallstones occur in approximately 7% of cholecystectomies. The secondary granulomatous reaction in paucisymptomatic patients can simulate peritoneal tumor processes in imaging tests, being one of the adverse effects described in relation to this pathology. In our case, the concomitant presence of peritoneal lesions together the pancreatic lesion oriented the initial case as a malignant process; however, the patient's evolution were key to the final diagnosis.

Introduction

Deficiency of serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] was associated with decreased short-term response to anti-tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNFα) agents in adults with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Data on the long-term outcome of pediatric IBD with 25(OH)D deficiency under anti-TNFα therapy are scarce. The aim of this study was to evaluate the relation between serum 25(OH)D levels and the long-term outcome of pediatric IBD under anti-TNFα therapy.

Aims & Methods

Children (<18 years) with IBD that were treated with anti-TNFα agents, and had 25(OH)D levels measured at the initiation of therapy and at least 12 months of follow up under this therapy were included. Demographic, clinical and laboratory data were retrospectively collected. IBD activity was measured by Pediatric Crohn's Disease Activity Index (PCDAI) or Pediatric ulcerative colitis activity index (PUCAI). IBD outcomes were defined as clinical response (reduction of PCDAI > 12.5 or PUCAI > 20 points), clinical remission (PCDAI or PUCAI < 10 points), laboratory remission (C-reactive protein < 5 mg/L and fecal calprotectin < 150 mcg/g), IBD exacerbation (relapse of clinical symptoms accompanied with an elevation above 10 points in the PCDAI or the PUCAI), IBD-related hospitalization, surgery and durability of therapy. Vitamin D deficiency was defined as serum 25(OH)D levels < 30 ng/ml.

Results

Of 530 children with IBD, 150 were treated with anti-TNFα agents and 84 [58 Crohn's disease, 26 ulcerative colitis, median age 15.2 (12.8-16.5) years] met the inclusion criteria. Their median 25(OH)D level was 23 (16.3-29.6) ng/ml, and 65 (77.4%) were 25(OH)D-deficient. 25(OH)D levels above 30 ng/ml were significantly associated with clinical response [HR=4 (1.43-11.11), P=0.008], clinical remission [HR=4.62 (2.56-8.33), P<0.001] and laboratory remission [HR=6.34 (3.39-11.84), P<0.001). Disease exacerbation, IBD-related hospitalization and surgery were non-significantly more prevalent among 25(OH)D-deficient children (12.2% vs. 5.3%, 13.8% vs. 0, 3.1% vs. 0, respectively, P=NS). While anti-TNFα trough levels were similar between 25(OH)D-deficient and non-deficient children, intensification of anti-TNFα therapy was more prevalent among 25(OH)D-deficient children (64.6% vs. 21.1%, P<0.001), as was discontinuation of anti-TNFα therapy (32.3% vs. 10.5%, P=0.061). In a multivariate analysis that included age, sex, IBD type, disease duration and anti-TNFα trough levels, 25(OH)D levels above 30 ng/ml were significantly associated with clinical response and remission [HR=3.92 (1.52-10.08), P=0.005 and HR=5.23 (1.88-14.55), P=0.002, respectively].

Conclusion

Deficiency of serum 25(OH)D is an independent predictor to poor IBD outcome under anti-TNFα therapy in children with IBD. Prospective studies are needed to determine whether supplementation of vitamin D can improve IBD outcome under anti-TNFα therapy.