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Chen DQ, Xu WB, Que ZQ, Xiao KY, Sun NK, Cai DX, Feng JY, Rui G. Therapeutic potential of single-nucleotide polymorphism-mediated IL6R inhibitors in ankylosing spondylitis treatment. Front Med (Lausanne) 2024; 11:1368346. [PMID: 38835791 PMCID: PMC11148286 DOI: 10.3389/fmed.2024.1368346] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/16/2024] [Accepted: 05/01/2024] [Indexed: 06/06/2024] Open
Abstract
Objective Interleukin-6 (IL-6) is a multiple-effect cell factor implicated in the etiopathogenesis of several rheumatologic disorders. The blockade of the IL-6 pathway via IL6R inhibitors effectively treats these disorders. However, the clinical significance of the IL6R blockade for ankylosing spondylitis (AS) therapy remains controversial. With advances in genomics, increasing evidence has revealed the role of heritability in the etiology of disease, and Mendelian randomization (MR) analyses are being used more broadly to infer causation. Therefore, this MR study aims to evaluate the potential therapeutic utility of IL6R-targeted approaches in AS. Methods The C-reactive protein (CRP) level was used as an exposure factor, and rheumatoid arthritis (RA) was used as a positive control. As-related genome-wide association study (GWAS) data were used as the primary outcome of drug-targeted MR analyses to test the relation between IL6R blockers and AS. Inverse variance weighting (IVW) is the primary analytical approach. Various sensitivity tests were performed to check the robustness and trustworthiness of the causality estimation, including consistency, heterogeneity, and pleiotropy analyses. In addition, repeated analysis was conducted using different GWAS data related to exposures and outcomes to examine the results for stability. Results According to the IVW results, IL6R inhibitors significantly reduced the risk of AS in ukb-b-18194 (OR: 0.995, 95% CI 0.993-0.996, P = 5.12 × 10-08) and ukb-a-88 (OR: 0.994, 95% CI 0.993-0.996, P = 6.25 × 10-15). Moreover, repeated analyses were performed using different exposure-related GWAS data, yielding similar results, ukb-b-18194 (OR: 0.995, 95% CI 0.993-0.997, P = 1.25 × 10-06) and ukb-a-88 (OR: 0.995, 95% CI 0.994-0.997, P = 7.81 × 10-09). Heterogeneity analyses and pleiotropy analyses indicated no significant heterogeneity or pleiotropy. Conclusion This MR analysis result further validates that the IL-6 pathway may contribute to the pathogenesis of AS and that the inhibition of IL6R reduces the risk of AS. These findings may guide future studies and provide more favorable drug treatment options for people at high risk of AS.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ding-Qiang Chen
- Department of Orthopedics, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xiamen University, Xiamen, China
- The School of Clinical Medicine, Fujian Medical University, Fuzhou, China
| | - Wen-Bin Xu
- Department of Orthopedics, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xiamen University, School of Medicine, Xiamen University, Xiamen, China
| | - Zhi-Qiang Que
- Department of Orthopedics, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xiamen University, School of Medicine, Xiamen University, Xiamen, China
| | - Ke-Yi Xiao
- Department of Orthopedics, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xiamen University, Xiamen, China
- The School of Clinical Medicine, Fujian Medical University, Fuzhou, China
| | - Nai-Kun Sun
- Department of Orthopedics, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xiamen University, School of Medicine, Xiamen University, Xiamen, China
| | - Di-Xin Cai
- Department of Orthopedics, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xiamen University, School of Medicine, Xiamen University, Xiamen, China
| | - Jin-Yi Feng
- Department of Orthopedics, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xiamen University, School of Medicine, Xiamen University, Xiamen, China
| | - Gang Rui
- Department of Orthopedics, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xiamen University, Xiamen, China
- The School of Clinical Medicine, Fujian Medical University, Fuzhou, China
- Department of Orthopedics, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xiamen University, School of Medicine, Xiamen University, Xiamen, China
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Jacobs BM, Vickaryous N, Giovannoni G, Proitsi P, Waters S, Dobson R. Plasma proteomic profiles of UK Biobank participants with multiple sclerosis. Ann Clin Transl Neurol 2024; 11:698-709. [PMID: 38282238 DOI: 10.1002/acn3.51990] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/22/2023] [Revised: 12/15/2023] [Accepted: 12/21/2023] [Indexed: 01/30/2024] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVE We aimed to describe plasma protein biomarkers of multiple sclerosis risk and to explore protein biomarkers of disease severity using radiological outcome measures. METHODS Multiple sclerosis cases and controls were identified in UK Biobank, a longitudinal cohort study of ~500,000 British adults. Plasma proteins were assayed in ~50,000 UK Biobank participants using the Olink proximity extension assay. We performed case-control association testing to examine the association between 2911 proteins and multiple sclerosis, using linear models adjusted for confounding covariates. Associations with radiological lesion burden and brain volume were determined in a subset of the cohort with available magnetic resonance imaging, using normalized T2-hyperintensity volume or whole brain volume as the outcome measure. RESULTS In total, 407 prevalent multiple sclerosis cases and 39,979 healthy controls were included. We discovered 72 proteins associated with multiple sclerosis at a Bonferroni-adjusted p value of 0.05, including established markers such as neurofilament light chain and glial fibrillary acidic protein. We observed a decrease in plasma Granzyme A, a marker of T cell and NK cell degranulation, which was specific to multiple sclerosis. Higher levels of plasma proteins involved in coagulation were associated with lower T2 lesion burden and preserved brain volume. INTERPRETATION We report the largest plasma proteomic screen of multiple sclerosis, replicating important known associations and suggesting novel markers, such as the reduction in granzyme A. While these findings require external validation, they demonstrate the power of biobank-scale datasets for discovering new biomarkers for multiple sclerosis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Benjamin M Jacobs
- Centre for Preventive Neurology, Wolfson Institute of Population Health, Queen Mary University of London, London, UK
- Department of Neurology, Royal London Hospital, London, UK
| | - Nicola Vickaryous
- Centre for Preventive Neurology, Wolfson Institute of Population Health, Queen Mary University of London, London, UK
| | - Gavin Giovannoni
- Centre for Preventive Neurology, Wolfson Institute of Population Health, Queen Mary University of London, London, UK
- Department of Neurology, Royal London Hospital, London, UK
| | - Petroula Proitsi
- Centre for Preventive Neurology, Wolfson Institute of Population Health, Queen Mary University of London, London, UK
| | - Sheena Waters
- Centre for Preventive Neurology, Wolfson Institute of Population Health, Queen Mary University of London, London, UK
| | - Ruth Dobson
- Centre for Preventive Neurology, Wolfson Institute of Population Health, Queen Mary University of London, London, UK
- Department of Neurology, Royal London Hospital, London, UK
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Fei Y, Yu H, Wu Y, Gong S. The causal relationship between immune cells and ankylosing spondylitis: a bidirectional Mendelian randomization study. Arthritis Res Ther 2024; 26:24. [PMID: 38229175 PMCID: PMC10790477 DOI: 10.1186/s13075-024-03266-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/24/2023] [Accepted: 01/09/2024] [Indexed: 01/18/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Ankylosing spondylitis (AS) is one of several disorders known as seronegative spinal arthritis (SpA), the origin of which is unknown. Existing epidemiological data show that inflammatory and immunological factors are important in the development of AS. Previous research on the connection between immunological inflammation and AS, however, has shown inconclusive results. METHODS To evaluate the causal association between immunological characteristics and AS, a bidirectional, two-sample Mendelian randomization (MR) approach was performed in this study. We investigated the causal connection between 731 immunological feature characteristic cells and AS risk using large, publically available genome-wide association studies. RESULTS After FDR correction, two immunophenotypes were found to be significantly associated with AS risk: CD14 - CD16 + monocyte (OR, 0.669; 95% CI, 0.544 ~ 0.823; P = 1.46 × 10-4; PFDR = 0.043), CD33dim HLA DR + CD11b + (OR, 0.589; 95% CI = 0.446 ~ 0.780; P = 2.12 × 10-4; PFDR = 0.043). AS had statistically significant effects on six immune traits: CD8 on HLA DR + CD8 + T cell (OR, 1.029; 95% CI, 1.015 ~ 1.043; P = 4.46 × 10-5; PFDR = 0.014), IgD on IgD + CD24 + B cell (OR, 0.973; 95% CI, 0.960 ~ 0.987; P = 1.2 × 10-4; PFDR = 0.021), IgD on IgD + CD38 - unswitched memory B cell (OR, 0.962; 95% CI, 0.945 ~ 0.980; P = 3.02 × 10-5; PFDR = 0.014), CD8 + natural killer T %lymphocyte (OR, 0.973; 95% CI, 0.959 ~ 0.987; P = 1.92 × 10-4; PFDR = 0.021), CD8 + natural killer T %T cell (OR, 0.973; 95% CI, 0.959 ~ 0.987; P = 1.65 × 10-4; PFDR = 0.021). CONCLUSION Our findings extend genetic research into the intimate link between immune cells and AS, which can help guide future clinical and basic research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuchang Fei
- Department of Integrated Chinese and Western Medicine, The First People's Hospital of Jiashan, Jiashan Hospital Affiliated of Jiaxing University, Jiaxing, Zhejiang, China.
| | - Huan Yu
- The Department of Traditional Chinese Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital of Ningbo University, Ningbo, Zhejiang, China
| | - Yulun Wu
- Center for Rehabilitation Medicine, Rehabilitation & Sports Medicine Research Institute of Zhejiang Province, Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Zhejiang Provincial People's Hospital, Affiliated People's Hospital, Hangzhou Medical College, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Shanshan Gong
- Department of Gastroenterology, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang Chinese Medical University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
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Fang Y, Liu J, Xin L, Jiang H, Guo J, Li X, Wang F, He M, Han Q, Huang D. Radix Salvia miltiorrhiza for Ankylosing Spondylitis: Determining Potential Inflammatory Molecular Targets and Mechanism Using Network Pharmacology. BIOMED RESEARCH INTERNATIONAL 2022; 2022:3816258. [PMID: 36147634 PMCID: PMC9489373 DOI: 10.1155/2022/3816258] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/22/2022] [Accepted: 08/25/2022] [Indexed: 12/03/2022]
Abstract
Radix Salvia miltiorrhiza (RSM) is widely used for the clinical improvement of inflammatory diseases. However, the actions of RSM in the treatment of ankylosing spondylitis (AS) have not been fully explored. Therefore, this study was designed to use retrospective clinical data mining approach to understand the effects of RSM on AS-related immuno-inflammatory processes, use network pharmacology to predict therapeutic targets of RSM, and to further investigate the pharmacological molecular mechanism in vitro. RSM treatment has a long-term correlation with the improvement of AS-related immuno-inflammatory indicators through computational models. We established protein-protein interaction networks, conducted KEGG analysis to enrich significant TNF pathways, and finally obtained three core targets of RSM in the treatment of AS, namely, prostaglandin endoperoxide synthase 2 (PTGS2), interleukin-6 (IL-6), and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha). Screening of RSM active ingredients with node degree greater than 20 yielded cryptotanshinone and tanshinone IIA, and previous studies have reported their anti-inflammatory effects. In vitro, both cryptotanshinone and tanshinone IIA significantly inhibited the expressions of PTGS2, IL-6, and TNF-α in peripheral blood mononuclear cells in AS patients. In conclusion, cryptotanshinone and tanshinone IIA, which are the active components of RSM, may inhibit the activation of TNF signaling pathway in AS patients by downregulating the expression of PTGS2, IL-6, and TNF-α. These findings illustrate that RSM may be a promising therapeutic candidate for AS, but further validation is required.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yanyan Fang
- The First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui University of Chinese Medicine, Hefei, Anhui 230038, China
- Key Laboratory of Xin'an Medicine of the Ministry of Education, Anhui University of Chinese Medicine, Hefei, Anhui 230038, China
| | - Jian Liu
- The First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui University of Chinese Medicine, Hefei, Anhui 230038, China
- Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Modern Chinese Medicine Department of Internal Medicine Application Foundation Research and Development, Hefei, Anhui 230038, China
| | - Ling Xin
- The First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui University of Chinese Medicine, Hefei, Anhui 230038, China
| | - Hui Jiang
- The First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui University of Chinese Medicine, Hefei, Anhui 230038, China
| | - Jinchen Guo
- Anhui University of Chinese Medicine, Hefei, Anhui 230031, China
| | - Xu Li
- The First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui University of Chinese Medicine, Hefei, Anhui 230038, China
- Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Modern Chinese Medicine Department of Internal Medicine Application Foundation Research and Development, Hefei, Anhui 230038, China
| | - Fanfan Wang
- The First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui University of Chinese Medicine, Hefei, Anhui 230038, China
- Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Modern Chinese Medicine Department of Internal Medicine Application Foundation Research and Development, Hefei, Anhui 230038, China
| | - Mingyu He
- The First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui University of Chinese Medicine, Hefei, Anhui 230038, China
- Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Modern Chinese Medicine Department of Internal Medicine Application Foundation Research and Development, Hefei, Anhui 230038, China
| | - Qi Han
- The First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui University of Chinese Medicine, Hefei, Anhui 230038, China
- Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Modern Chinese Medicine Department of Internal Medicine Application Foundation Research and Development, Hefei, Anhui 230038, China
| | - Dan Huang
- The First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui University of Chinese Medicine, Hefei, Anhui 230038, China
- Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Modern Chinese Medicine Department of Internal Medicine Application Foundation Research and Development, Hefei, Anhui 230038, China
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