Circulating RIPK3 levels are associated with mortality and organ failure during critical illness.

Background: Necroptosis is a form of programmed necrotic cell death that is rapidly emerging as an important pathophysiological pathway in numerous disease states. Necroptosis is dependent on receptor-interacting protein kinase 3 (RIPK3), a protein shown to play an important role in experimental models of critical illness. However, there is limited clinical evidence regarding the role of extracellular RIPK3 in human critical illness.

Methods: Plasma RIPK3 levels were measured in 953 patients prospectively enrolled in 5 ongoing intensive care unit (ICU) cohorts in both the USA and Korea. RIPK3 concentrations among groups were compared using prospectively collected phenotypic and outcomes data.

Results: In all 5 cohorts, extracellular RIPK3 levels in the plasma were higher in patients who died in the hospital compared with those who survived to discharge. In a combined analysis, increasing RIPK3 levels were associated with elevated odds of in-hospital mortality (odds ratio [OR] 1.7 for each log10-unit increase in RIPK3 level, P < 0.0001). When adjusted for baseline severity of illness, the OR for in-hospital mortality remained statistically significant (OR 1.33, P = 0.007). Higher RIPK3 levels were also associated with more severe organ failure.

Conclusions: Our findings suggest that elevated levels of RIPK3 in the plasma of patients admitted to the ICU are associated with in-hospital mortality and organ failure.

Funding: Supported by NIH grants P01 HL108801, R01 HL079904, R01 HL055330, R01 HL060234, K99 HL125899, and KL2TR000458-10. Supported by Samsung Medical Center grant SMX1161431.