Browsing by Author "Caldwell, Julie M."

Now showing 1 - 3 of 3
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Evaluating Eosinophilic Colitis as a Unique Disease Using Colonic Molecular Profiles: A Multi-Site Study
    (Elsevier, 2022) Shoda, Tetsuo; Collins, Margaret H.; Rochman, Mark; Wen, Ting; Caldwell, Julie M.; Mack, Lydia E.; Osswald, Garrett A.; Besse, John A.; Haberman, Yael; Aceves, Seema S.; Arva, Nicoleta C.; Capocelli, Kelley E.; Chehade, Mirna; Davis, Carla M.; Dellon, Evan S.; Falk, Gary W.; Gonsalves, Nirmala; Gupta, Sandeep K.; Hirano, Ikuo; Khoury, Paneez; Klion, Amy; Menard-Katcher, Calies; Leung, John; Mukkada, Vincent; Putnam, Philip E.; Spergel, Jonathan M.; Wechsler, Joshua B.; Yang, Guang-Yu; Furuta, Glenn T.; Denson, Lee A.; Rothenberg, Marc E.; Consortium of Eosinophilic Gastrointestinal Diseases Researchers (CEGIR); Pediatrics, School of Medicine
    Background & aims: Colonic eosinophilia, an enigmatic finding often referred to as eosinophilic colitis (EoC), is a poorly understood condition. Whether EoC is a distinct disease or a colonic manifestation of eosinophilic gastrointestinal diseases (EGIDs) or inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is undetermined. Methods: Subjects with EoC (n = 27) and controls (normal [NL, n = 20], Crohn's disease [CD, n = 14]) were enrolled across sites associated with the Consortium of Eosinophilic Gastrointestinal Disease Researchers. EoC was diagnosed as colonic eosinophilia (ascending ≥100, descending ≥85, sigmoid ≥65 eosinophils/high-power field) with related symptoms. Colon biopsies were subjected to RNA sequencing. Associations between gene expression and histologic features were analyzed with Spearman correlation; operational pathways and cellular constituents were computationally derived. Results: We identified 987 differentially expressed genes (EoC transcriptome) between EoC and NL (>1.5-fold change, P < .05). Colonic eosinophil count correlated with 31% of EoC transcriptome, most notably with CCL11 and CLC (r = 0.78 and 0.77, P < .0001). Among EoC and other EGIDs, there was minimal transcriptomic overlap and minimal evidence of a strong allergic type 2 immune response in EoC compared with other EGIDs. Decreased cell cycle and increased apoptosis in EoC compared with NL were identified by functional enrichment analysis and immunostaining using Ki-67 and cleaved caspase-3. Pericryptal circumferential eosinophil collars were associated with the EoC transcriptome (P < .001). EoC transcriptome-based scores were reversible with disease remission and differentiated EoC from IBD, even after controlling for colonic eosinophil levels (P < .0001). Conclusions: We established EoC transcriptomic profiles, identified mechanistic pathways, and integrated findings with parallel IBD and EGID data. These findings establish EoC as a distinct disease compared with other EGIDs and IBD, thereby providing a basis for improving diagnosis and treatment.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Loss of Endothelial TSPAN12 Promotes Fibrostenotic Eosinophilic Esophagitis via Endothelial Cell–Fibroblast Crosstalk
    (AGA, 2022-02) Shoda, Tetsuo; Wen, Ting; Caldwell, Julie M.; Morgenstern, Netali Ben-Baruch; Osswald, Garrett A.; Rochman, Mark; Mack, Lydia E.; Felton, Jennifer M.; Abonia, J. Pablo; Arva, Nicoleta C.; Atkina, Dan; Bonis, Peter A.; Capocelli, Kelley E.; Collins, Margaret H.; Dellon, Evan S.; Falk, Gary W.; Gonsalves, Nirmala; Gupta, Sandeep K.; Hirano, Ikuo; Leung, John; Menard-Katcher, Paul A.; Mukkada, Vincent A.; Putnam, Philip E.; Rudman Spergel, Amanda K.; Spergel, Jonathan M.; Wechsler, Joshua B.; Yang, Guang-Yu; Aceves, Seema S.; Furuta, Glenn T.; Rothenberg, Marc E.; Consortium of Eosinophilic Gastrointestinal Disease Researchers (CEGIR) Investigators Group; Medicine, School of Medicine
    Background & Aims Eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE) can progress to fibrostenosis by unclear mechanisms. Herein, we investigated gene dysregulation in fibrostenotic EoE, its association with clinical parameters and specific pathways, and the functional consequences. Methods Esophageal biopsies from subjects with EoE were collected across 11 Consortium of Eosinophilic Gastrointestinal Disease Researchers (CEGIR) sites (n = 311) and two independent replication cohorts (n = 83). Inclusion criteria for fibrostenotic EoE were endoscopic rings, stricture, and/or a history of dilation. Endoscopic, histologic, and molecular features were assessed by the EoE endoscopic reference score (EREFS), EoE Histology Scoring System (HSS), EoE Diagnostic Panel (EDP), and RNA sequencing. Esophageal endothelial TSPAN12 expression and functional effects on barrier integrity and gene expression were analyzed in vitro. Results TSPAN12 was the gene most correlated with fibrostenosis (r = -0.40, P < .001). TSPAN12 was lower in fibrostenotic EoE and correlated with EREFS, EDP, and HSS (r = 0.34–0.47, P < .001). Lower TSPAN12 associated with smaller esophageal diameter (r = 0.44, P = .03), increased lamina propria fibrosis (r = -0.41, P < .001), and genes enriched in cell cycle–related pathways. IL-13 reduced TSPAN12 expression in endothelial cells. Conversely, anti-IL-13 therapy increased TSPAN12 expression. TSPAN12 gene silencing increased endothelial cell permeability and dysregulated genes associated with extracellular matrix (ECM) pathways. Endothelial cell–fibroblast crosstalk induced ECM changes relevant to esophageal remodeling. Conclusions Patients with fibrostenotic EoE express decreased levels of endothelial TSPAN12. We propose that IL-13 decreases TSPAN12, likely contributing to the chronicity of EoE by promoting tissue remodeling through fibroblast-endothelial cell crosstalk.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    One Food versus Six Food Elimination Diet Therapy for Treatment of Eosinophilic Esophagitis: A Multicenter Randomized Clinical Trial
    (Elsevier, 2023) Kliewer, Kara L.; Gonsalves, Nirmala; Dellon, Evan S.; Katzka, David A.; Abonia, Juan P.; Aceves, Seema S.; Arva, Nicoleta C.; Besse, John A.; Bonis, Peter A.; Caldwell, Julie M.; Capocelli, Kelley E.; Chehade, Mirna; Cianferoni, Antonella; Collins, Margaret H.; Falk, Gary W.; Gupta, Sandeep K.; Hirano, Ikuo; Krischer, Jeffrey P.; Leung, John; Martin, Lisa J.; Menard-Katcher, Paul; Mukkada, Vincent A.; Peterson, Kathryn A.; Shoda, Tetsuo; Rudman Spergel, Amanda K.; Spergel, Jonathan M.; Yang, Guang-Yu; Zhang, Xue; Furuta, Glenn T.; Rothenberg, Marc E.; Pediatrics, School of Medicine
    Background: Empirical elimination diets are effective for achieving histological remission in eosinophilic oesophagitis, but randomised trials comparing diet therapies are lacking. We aimed to compare a six-food elimination diet (6FED) with a one-food elimination diet (1FED) for the treatment of adults with eosinophilic oesophagitis. Methods: We conducted a multicentre, randomised, open-label trial across ten sites of the Consortium of Eosinophilic Gastrointestinal Disease Researchers in the USA. Adults aged 18-60 years with active, symptomatic eosinophilic oesophagitis were centrally randomly allocated (1:1; block size of four) to 1FED (animal milk) or 6FED (animal milk, wheat, egg, soy, fish and shellfish, and peanut and tree nuts) for 6 weeks. Randomisation was stratified by age, enrolling site, and gender. The primary endpoint was the proportion of patients with histological remission (peak oesophageal count <15 eosinophils per high-power field [eos/hpf]). Key secondary endpoints were the proportions with complete histological remission (peak count ≤1 eos/hpf) and partial remission (peak counts ≤10 and ≤6 eos/hpf) and changes from baseline in peak eosinophil count and scores on the Eosinophilic Esophagitis Histology Scoring System (EoEHSS), Eosinophilic Esophagitis Endoscopic Reference Score (EREFS), Eosinophilic Esophagitis Activity Index (EEsAI), and quality of life (Adult Eosinophilic Esophagitis Quality-of-Life and Patient Reported Outcome Measurement Information System Global Health questionnaires). Individuals without histological response to 1FED could proceed to 6FED, and those without histological response to 6FED could proceed to swallowed topical fluticasone propionate 880 μg twice per day (with unrestricted diet), for 6 weeks. Histological remission after switching therapy was assessed as a secondary endpoint. Efficacy and safety analyses were done in the intention-to-treat (ITT) population. This trial is registered on ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT02778867, and is completed. Findings: Between May 23, 2016, and March 6, 2019, 129 patients (70 [54%] men and 59 [46%] women; mean age 37·0 years [SD 10·3]) were enrolled, randomly assigned to 1FED (n=67) or 6FED (n=62), and included in the ITT population. At 6 weeks, 25 (40%) of 62 patients in the 6FED group had histological remission compared with 23 (34%) of 67 in the 1FED group (difference 6% [95% CI -11 to 23]; p=0·58). We found no significant difference between the groups at stricter thresholds for partial remission (≤10 eos/hpf, difference 7% [-9 to 24], p=0·46; ≤6 eos/hpf, 14% [-0 to 29], p=0·069); the proportion with complete remission was significantly higher in the 6FED group than in the 1FED group (difference 13% [2 to 25]; p=0·031). Peak eosinophil counts decreased in both groups (geometric mean ratio 0·72 [0·43 to 1·20]; p=0·21). For 6FED versus 1FED, mean changes from baseline in EoEHSS (-0·23 vs -0·15; difference -0·08 [-0·21 to 0·05]; p=0·23), EREFS (-1·0 vs -0·6; difference -0·4 [-1·1 to 0·3]; p=0·28), and EEsAI (-8·2 vs -3·0; difference -5·2 [-11·2 to 0·8]; p=0·091) were not significantly different. Changes in quality-of-life scores were small and similar between the groups. No adverse event was observed in more than 5% of patients in either diet group. For patients without histological response to 1FED who proceeded to 6FED, nine (43%) of 21 reached histological remission; for patients without histological response to 6FED who proceeded to fluticasone propionate, nine (82%) of 11 reached histological remission. Interpretation: Histological remission rates and improvements in histological and endoscopic features were similar after 1FED and 6FED in adults with eosinophilic oesophagitis. 6FED had efficacy in just less than half of 1FED non-responders and steroids had efficacy in most 6FED non-responders. Our findings indicate that eliminating animal milk alone is an acceptable initial dietary therapy for eosinophilic oesophagitis.