Publications by authors named "Holm Uhlig"

Background And Aims: Data on upadacitinib therapy in children with ulcerative colitis (UC) or unclassified inflammatory bowel disease (IBD-U) are scarce. We aimed to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of upadacitinib as an induction therapy in pediatric UC or IBD-U.

Methods: In this multicenter retrospective study, children treated with upadacitinib for induction of remission of active UC or IBD-U from 30 centers worldwide were enrolled.

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Precision medicine in immune-mediated inflammatory diseases (IMIDs) requires a cellular understanding of treatment response. We describe a therapeutic atlas for Crohn's disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC) following adalimumab, an anti-tumour necrosis factor (anti-TNF) treatment. We generated ~1 million single-cell transcriptomes, organised into 109 cell states, from 216 gut biopsies (41 subjects), revealing disease-specific differences.

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The genetic contribution to inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) encompassing both Crohn's disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC), accounts for around 20% of disease variance, highlighting the need to characterise environmental and epigenetic influences. Recently considerable progress has been made in characterising the adult methylome, in epigenome-wide association studies. We report detailed analysis of the circulating methylome in 86 patients with childhood-onset CD,UC and 30 controls using the Illumina Infinium Human MethylationEPIC platform.

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Article Synopsis
  • PI4KA-related disorder is marked by a variety of neurological and gastrointestinal issues, including spasticity, developmental challenges, and recurrent infections, with specific attention given to the impact on B-cell function and immunodeficiency in some patients. * -
  • The study involved analyzing 13 patients with PI4KA variants, revealing common traits such as B-cell deficiency and hypogammaglobulinemia, alongside significant changes in B-cell subsets and functioning due to metabolic disruptions. * -
  • Findings indicate that mutations in PI4KA lead to disturbances in lipid production and metabolic pathways in B cells, fostering mitochondrial dysfunction and abnormal immune responses, suggesting a critical role of PI4KA in B-cell differentiation and health. *
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  • IL10RA deficiency is a serious genetic disease that causes gut inflammation in babies and can be fatal, but a special type of treatment called hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) can help.
  • In Japan, researchers looked at seven patients with this deficiency, including both new and previously known cases.
  • All five patients who had HCT survived and got better, showing that this treatment should be done early for the best chance of recovery.
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The proximal part of the small intestine, including duodenum and jejunum, is not only dedicated to nutrient digestion and absorption but is also a highly regulated immune site exposed to environmental factors. Host-protective responses against pathogens and tolerance to food antigens are essential functions in the small intestine. The cellular ecology and molecular pathways to maintain those functions are complex.

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We discovered high-titer neutralizing autoantibodies against interleukin-10 in a child with infantile-onset inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), a phenocopy of inborn errors of interleukin-10 signaling. After B-cell-depletion therapy and an associated decrease in the anti-interleukin-10 titer, conventional IBD therapy could be withdrawn. A second child with neutralizing anti-interleukin-10 autoantibodies had a milder course of IBD and has been treated without B-cell depletion.

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Improved biomarkers are needed for pediatric inflammatory bowel disease. Here we identify a diagnostic lipidomic signature for pediatric inflammatory bowel disease by analyzing blood samples from a discovery cohort of incident treatment-naïve pediatric patients and validating findings in an independent inception cohort. The lipidomic signature comprising of only lactosyl ceramide (d18:1/16:0) and phosphatidylcholine (18:0p/22:6) improves the diagnostic prediction compared with high-sensitivity C-reactive protein.

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Despite major advances in linking single genetic variants to single causal genes, the significance of genetic variation on transcript-level regulation of expression, transcript-specific functions, and relevance to human disease has been poorly investigated. Strawberry notch homolog 2 (SBNO2) is a candidate gene in a susceptibility locus with different variants associated with Crohn's disease and bone mineral density. The SBNO2 locus is also differentially methylated in Crohn's disease but the functional mechanisms are unknown.

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  • This study investigates the role of inversions—structural variants that involve the rearrangement of DNA—in genetic diseases, using data from 33,924 families involved in the 100,000 Genomes Project.
  • Researchers identified 47 ultra-rare rearrangements, including de novo inversions, in genes linked to disease, with analyses correlating genetic findings to clinical outcomes in some cases, including a specific diagnosis for three family members.
  • The findings suggest that while inversions are less common in genetic diseases compared to other structural variants, they can significantly contribute to the etiology in approximately 1 in 750 families with rare conditions.
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  • - The study focused on 16 Iranian patients with very early-onset inflammatory bowel disease (VEO-IBD), aiming to explore the role of underlying genetic issues related to inborn errors of immunity (IEI) in this condition.
  • - Most patients were young (median age of 43.5 months), with symptoms starting around 4 months; common signs included chronic diarrhea and perianal diseases, with a notable prevalence of consanguinity among parents.
  • - Whole exome sequencing (WES) revealed genetic variants in 81.3% of patients, highlighting notable gene mutations like IL10RB, and emphasizing the need for genetic evaluation in early-onset IBD cases due to the high incidence of mon
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The short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) butyrate, propionate and acetate are microbial metabolites and their availability in the gut and other organs is determined by environmental factors, such as diet and use of antibiotics, that shape the diversity and metabolism of the microbiota. SCFAs regulate epithelial barrier function as well as mucosal and systemic immunity via evolutionary conserved processes that involve G protein-coupled receptor signalling or histone deacetylase activity. Indicatively, the anti-inflammatory role of butyrate is mediated through direct effects on the differentiation of intestinal epithelial cells, phagocytes, B cells and plasma cells, and regulatory and effector T cells.

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Neutrophils are the most abundant innate immune cells. Multiple mechanisms allow them to engage a wide range of metabolic pathways for biosynthesis and bioenergetics for mediating biological processes such as development in the bone marrow and antimicrobial activity such as ROS production and NET formation, inflammation and tissue repair. We first discuss recent work on neutrophil development and functions and the metabolic processes to regulate granulopoiesis, neutrophil migration and trafficking as well as effector functions.

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Genetic variants in IL6ST encoding the shared cytokine receptor for the IL-6 cytokine family GP130 have been associated with a diverse number of clinical phenotypes and disorders. We provide a molecular classification for 59 reported rare IL6ST pathogenic or likely pathogenic variants and additional polymorphisms. Based on loss- or gain-of-function, cytokine selectivity, mono- and biallelic associations, and variable cellular mosaicism, we grade six classes of IL6ST variants and explore the potential for additional variants.

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  • Whole genome sequencing (WGS) is being increasingly used to diagnose rare diseases, but traditional methods often have low diagnostic yields, typically 25-30%.
  • In a study involving 122 rare disease patients and their relatives, a comprehensive bioinformatics approach led to a diagnostic yield of 35%, with 39% solved when including novel gene candidates.
  • The study also identified several novel genes, expanded the phenotypic understanding of existing conditions, and resulted in critical changes to clinical diagnoses and treatments for some patients.
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Owing to advances in genomics that enable differentiation of molecular aetiologies, patients with monogenic inflammatory bowel disease (mIBD) potentially have access to genotype-guided precision medicine. In this Expert Recommendation, we review the therapeutic research landscape of mIBD, the reported response to therapies, the medication-related risks and systematic bias in reporting. The mIBD field is characterized by the absence of randomized controlled trials and is dominated by retrospective observational data based on case series and case reports.

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Recent advances in our understanding of the pathogenesis of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) have highlighted the complex interplay between the genome, the epigenome, and the environment. Despite the exciting advances in genomics that have enabled the identification of over 200 susceptibility loci, these only account for a small proportion of the disease variance and the estimated heritability in IBD. It is likely that gene-environment (GxE) interactions contribute to "missing heritability" and these may act through epigenetic mechanisms.

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Phosphomannomutase 2 (PMM2) deficiency causes Congenital Disorder of Glycosylation (PMM2-CDG), but does not have a recognised association with Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD). A distinct clinical syndrome of hyperinsulinism and autosomal recessive polycystic kidney disease (HIPKD) arises in the context of a specific variant in the PMM2 promotor, either in homozygosity, or compound heterozygous with a deleterious PMM2 variant. Here, we describe the development of IBD in three patients with PMM2-HIPKD, with onset of IBD at 0, 6, and 10 years of age.

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Genomic medicine enables the identification of patients with rare or ultra-rare monogenic forms of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and supports clinical decision making. Patients with monogenic IBD frequently experience extremely early onset of treatment-refractory disease, with complex extraintestinal disease typical of immunodeficiency. Since more than 100 monogenic disorders can present with IBD, new genetic disorders and variants are being discovered every year, and as phenotypic expression of the gene defects is variable, adaptive genomic technologies are required.

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Interactions with commensal microbes shape host immunity on multiple levels and play a pivotal role in human health and disease. Tissue-dwelling, antigen-specific T cells are poised to respond to local insults, making their phenotype important in the relationship between host and microbes. Here we show that MHC-II restricted, commensal-reactive T cells in the colon of both humans and mice acquire transcriptional and functional characteristics associated with innate-like T cells.

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Article Synopsis
  • Toll-like receptors (TLRs), especially TLR4 with its co-receptor MD2, play a crucial role in recognizing microbes and triggering the body’s immune response against infections, particularly from gram-negative bacteria.
  • A patient's genetic analysis revealed a mutation in the LY96 gene (which encodes for MD2) that led to significant immune system dysfunction, evidenced by impaired signaling and cytokine production in response to bacterial challenges.
  • Findings suggest that MD2 deficiency can lead to weakened immune responses to gram-negative bacteria, highlighting the need for further understanding of its clinical implications and potential therapeutic targets in treating inflammatory diseases.
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Background: Toll-like receptors (TLRs) mediate functions for host defense and inflammatory responses. TLR4 recognizes LPS, a component of gram-negative bacteria as well as host-derived endogenous ligands such as S100A8 and S100A9 proteins.

Objective: We sought to report phenotype and cellular function of individuals with complete TLR4 deficiency.

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