Variant STAT4 and Response to Ruxolitinib in an Autoinflammatory Syndrome.

BACKGROUND: Disabling pansclerotic morphea (DPM) is a rare systemic inflammatory disorder, characterized by poor wound healing, fibrosis, cytopenias, hypogammaglobulinemia, and squamous-cell carcinoma. The cause is unknown, and mortality is high. METHODS: We evaluated four patients from three unrelated families with an autosomal dominant pattern of inheritance of DPM. Genomic sequencing independently identified three heterozygous variants in a specific region of the gene that encodes signal transducer and activator of transcription 4 (STAT4). Primary skin fibroblast and cell-line assays were used to define the functional nature of the genetic defect. We also assayed gene expression using single-cell RNA sequencing of peripheral-blood mononuclear cells to identify inflammatory pathways that may be affected in DPM and that may respond to therapy. RESULTS: Genome sequencing revealed three novel heterozygous missense gain-of-function variants in STAT4. In vitro, primary skin fibroblasts showed enhanced interleukin-6 secretion, with impaired wound healing, contraction of the collagen matrix, and matrix secretion. Inhibition of Janus kinase (JAK)-STAT signaling with ruxolitinib led to improvement in the hyperinflammatory fibroblast phenotype in vitro and resolution of inflammatory markers and clinical symptoms in treated patients, without adverse effects. Single-cell RNA sequencing revealed expression patterns consistent with an immunodysregulatory phenotype that were appropriately modified through JAK inhibition. CONCLUSIONS: Gain-of-function variants in STAT4 caused DPM in the families that we studied. The JAK inhibitor ruxolitinib attenuated the dermatologic and inflammatory phenotype in vitro and in the affected family members. (Funded by the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology Foundation and others.).

Interrupting an IFN-γ-dependent feedback loop in the syndrome of pyogenic arthritis with pyoderma gangrenosum and acne.

OBJECTIVES: To study the molecular pathogenesis of PAPA (pyogenic arthritis, pyoderma gangrenosum and acne) syndrome, a debilitating hereditary autoinflammatory disease caused by dominant mutation in PSTPIP1. METHODS: Gene knock-out and knock-in mice were generated to develop an animal model. THP1 and retrovirally transduced U937 human myeloid leukaemia cell lines, peripheral blood mononuclear cells, small interfering RNA (siRNA) knock-down, site-directed mutagenesis, cytokine immunoassays, coimmunoprecipitation and immunoblotting were used to study inflammasome activation. Cytokine levels in the skin were evaluated by immunohistochemistry. Responsiveness to Janus kinase (JAK) inhibitors was evaluated ex vivo with peripheral blood mononuclear cells and in vivo in five treatment-refractory PAPA patients. RESULTS: The knock-in mouse model of PAPA did not recapitulate the human disease. In a human myeloid cell line model, PAPA-associated PSTPIP1 mutations activated the pyrin inflammasome, but not the NLRP3, NLRC4 or AIM2 inflammasomes. Pyrin inflammasome activation was independent of the canonical pathway of pyrin serine dephosphorylation and was blocked by the p.W232A PSTPIP1 mutation, which disrupts pyrin-PSTPIP1 interaction. IFN-γ priming of monocytes from PAPA patients led to IL-18 release in a pyrin-dependent manner. IFN-γ was abundant in the inflamed dermis of PAPA patients, but not patients with idiopathic pyoderma gangrenosum. Ex vivo JAK inhibitor treatment attenuated IFN-γ-mediated pyrin induction and IL-18 release. In 5/5 PAPA patients, the addition of JAK inhibitor therapy to IL-1 inhibition was associated with clinical improvement. CONCLUSION: PAPA-associated PSTPIP1 mutations trigger a pyrin-IL-18-IFN-γ positive feedback loop that drives PAPA disease activity and is a target for JAK inhibition.

Case report: Novel variants in RELA associated with familial Behcet's-like disease.

RELA haploinsufficiency is a recently described autoinflammatory condition presenting with intermittent fevers and mucocutaneous ulcerations. The RELA gene encodes the p65 protein, one of five NF-κB family transcription factors. As RELA is an essential regulator of mucosal homeostasis, haploinsufficiency leads to decreased NF-κB signaling which promotes TNF-driven mucosal apoptosis with impaired epithelial recovery. Thus far, only eight cases have been reported in the literature. Here, we report four families with three novel and one previously described pathogenic variant in RELA. These four families included 23 affected individuals for which genetic testing was available in 16. Almost half of these patients had been previously diagnosed with more common rheumatologic entities (such as Behcet's Disease; BD) prior to the discovery of their pathogenic RELA variants. The most common clinical features were orogenital ulcers, rash, joint inflammation, and fever. The least common were conjunctivitis and recurrent infections. Clinical variability was remarkable even among familial cases, and incomplete penetrance was observed. Patients in our series were treated with a variety of medications, and benefit was observed with glucocorticoids, colchicine, and TNF inhibitors. Altogether, our work adds to the current literature and doubles the number of reported cases with RELA-Associated Inflammatory Disease (RAID). It reaffirms the central importance of the NF-κB pathway in immunity and inflammation, as well as the important regulatory role of RELA in mucosal homeostasis. RELA associated inflammatory disease should be considered in all patients with BD, particularly those with early onset and/or with a strong family history.

Is Anti-NXP2 Autoantibody a Risk Factor for Calcinosis and Poor Outcome in Juvenile Dermatomyositis Patients? Case Series.

Juvenile dermatomyositis (JDM) has a wide spectrum of clinical presentations. In the last decade, several myositis-specific antibodies have been identified in patients with JDM and connected with specific organ involvement or specific clinical picture. It has been published that the presence of anti-NXP2 autoantibodies presents a risk for calcinosis in patients with JDM. We aimed to investigate the prevalence of calcinosis and response to the treatment in JDM patients with anti-NXP2. In a retrospective, multinational, multicenter study, data on 26 JDM (19 F, 7 M) patients with positive anti-NXP2 were collected. The mean age at disease presentation was 6.5 years (SD 3.7), the median diagnosis delay was 4 months (range 0.5-27 months). Patients were divided into two groups (A and B) based on the presence of calcinosis, which occurred in 42% of anti-NXP2 positive JDM patients (group A). Four patients already had calcinosis at presentation, one developed calcinosis after 4 months, and 6 developed calcinosis later in the disease course (median 2 years, range 0.8-7.8). The differences in laboratory results were not statistically significant between the groups. The mean age at disease presentation (5.2/7.5 years) trended toward being younger in group A. Children with calcinosis were treated with several combinations of drugs. In four cases, rituximab and, in one case, anti-TNF alpha agents were used successfully. Disease outcome (by evaluation of the treating physician) was excellent in four, good in two, stable in two, and poor in three patients. None of the patients from group B had a poor disease outcome. In conclusion, JDM patients with anti-NXP2 are prone to develop calcinosis, especially if they present with the disease early, before 5 years of age. The development of calcinosis is associated with worse disease outcomes. The combination of several immunomodulatory drugs and biologic drugs can stop calcinosis progression; however, there are no evidence-based therapies for treating calcinosis in JDM patients.