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Objectives: To study the expression of V-domain Ig suppressor of T cell activation (VISTA) in peripheral blood of children with juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) and its role in the pathogenesis of JIA., Methods: In this prospective study, peripheral blood was collected from 47 children with different subtypes of JIA and 10 healthy children. Flow cytometry was used to measure the expression levels of VISTA, interferon-γ (IFN-γ), and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) on CD14 + mononuclear cells, CD4 + T lymphocytes, and CD8 + T lymphocytes., Results: The children with JIA had a significantly lower expression level of VISTA than the healthy children ( P <0.05). There was a significant difference in the expression of VISTA between the children with different subtypes of JIA, with the lowest expression level in those with systemic JIA ( P <0.05). There was also a significant difference in the expression of VISTA between different immune cells, with a significantly higher expression level on the surface of monocytes ( P <0.05). Correlation analysis showed that VISTA was negatively correlated with the expression of IFN-γ and TNF-α on CD4 + T cells ( r =-0.436 and -0.382 respectively, P <0.05), CD8 + T cells ( r =-0.348 and -0.487 respectively, P <0.05), and CD14 + mononuclear cells ( r =-0.582 and -0.603 respectively, P <0.05)., Conclusions: The insufficient expression of VISTA may be associated with the pathogenesis of JIA, and enhancing the immunomodulatory effect of VISTA might be one option for the treatment of JIA in the future.

Objectives: To study the expression levels of CD4 + NKG2D + T cells and NKG2D soluble ligands, the soluble MHC class I chain-related molecules A and B (sMICA/sMICB) in the active stage and stable stage of juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) and their role in the disease activity of JIA., Methods: Nineteen children with systemic JIA and 20 children with articular JIA who were diagnosed in Children's Hospital of Chongqing Medical University from November 2019 to December 2021 were enrolled in this prospective study. Six healthy children were enrolled as the control group. After peripheral blood samples were collected, ELISA was used to measure the levels of sMICA and sMICB, and flow cytometry was used to measure the percentage of CD4 + NKG2D + T cells. Systemic Juvenile Arthritis Disease Activity Score-27 (sJADAS-27)/Juvenile Arthritis Disease Activity Score-27 (JADAS-27) was used to evaluate the disease activity in children with JIA. The Pearson correlation analysis and the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve were used to assess the role of CD4 + NKG2D + T cells, sMICA and sMICB in the disease activity of JIA., Results: The active systemic JIA and active articular JIA groups had a significant increase in the percentage of CD4 + NKG2D + T cells compared with the control group and their corresponding inactive JIA group ( P <0.05). The JIA groups had significantly higher levels of sMICA and sMICB than the control group ( P <0.05), and the active articular JIA group had a significantly higher level of sMICB than the stable articular JIA group ( P <0.05). In the children with JIA, the percentage of CD4 + NKG2D + T cells and the levels of sMICA and sMICB were positively correlated with sJADAS-27/JADAS-27 disease activity scores ( P <0.05). The ROC curve analysis showed that sMICB had an area under the curve of 0.755 in evaluating the disease activity of JIA, with a specificity of 0.90 and a sensitivity of 0.64., Conclusions: The percentage of CD4 + NKG2D + T cells and the levels of sMICA and sMICB increase in children with JIA compared with healthy children and are positively correlated with the disease activity of JIA, suggesting that CD4 + NKG2D + T cells and NKG2D ligands can be used as potential biomarkers for evaluating the disease activity of JIA.

Objective: To analyze the levels of high mobility group box 1 (HMGB1) protein on different courses of juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA)., Methods: In our prospective longitudinal study, children with JIA were included with their blood samples collected at the first visit, 1-month, 3-month, and 6-month follow-up, respectively. Samples were also collected from healthy controls and children with reactive arthritis at the first visit. Levels of HMGB1 were determined using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays. Clinical disease characteristics and routine laboratory findings were analyzed as well., Results: A total of 64 children were enrolled, of whom 31 (48.4%) were female. The median age at the first visit for participants with JIA was 9.25 years (range, 1.42-15.42) and the median duration of disease was 2.38 months (range, 1.53-49.31). Serum HMGB1 levels at the first visit were significantly elevated in children with systemic JIA compared with other groups, and so were in enthesitis-related arthritis versus healthy controls. Significant correlations were established at the first visit between HMGB1 levels and duration of disease, C-reactive protein, percentage of neutrophils, and ferritin. Data from all samples revealed that serum HMGB1 levels in JIA were significantly associated with erythrocyte sedimentation rates, C-reactive protein, percentage of neutrophils, and disease activity scores., Conclusions: Serum HMGB1 may be associated with clinical disease activity of JIA and specifically increased at the first visit in children with systemic JIA, suggesting its function as a sensitive inflammatory marker. Further large-scale studies are warranted to explore its spectrum in JIA., (© 2021. The Author(s).)

Objective: We conducted a systematic review and network meta-analysis to compare the efficacy and safety of nine non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) in treating patients with juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA)., Methods: Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of NSAIDs for the treatment in children with JIA were searched systematically by using MEDLINE, EMBASE, and the Cochrane Library for available literature up to January 1, 2019. Bayesian network meta-analysis was used to combine direct and indirect evidence on treatment effectiveness and safety., Results: Eight eligible RCTs involving 1112 patients with JIA were identified, addressing 9 interventions. The ranking probability plot based on the surface under the cumulative ranking curve (SUCRA) indicated that celecoxib (6 mg/kg twice-a-day) had the highest probability of being most effective (SUCRA = 76.4%) among four NSAIDs (celecoxib, rofecoxib, meloxicam, and naproxen). Also, rofecoxib (0.3 mg/kg once-a-day) and piroxicam demonstrated a higher probability of safety in treating children with JIA (SUCRA = 33.0% and 35.5%, respectively), compared with other interventions., Conclusions: The quality of available evidence limits the formation of powerful conclusions regarding the comparative efficacy or safety of NSAIDs used to treat JIA.

Background: Juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) is a chronic inflammatory disease that includes seven heterogeneous subgroups with different prognoses. In particular, polyarticular JIA (pJIA) has a longer period of active disease and a poorer prognosis. Tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha inhibitors are effective in patients with pJIA, but the therapeutic regimen remains controversial. Here, we performed a single-center study to determine the potential correlation between TNF-alpha inhibitor (infliximab) therapy and outcomes in these patients., Methods: Clinical data of 40 pJIA patients were collected at our center from January 1, 2010 to January 1, 2018, and patients were grouped according to the timing of infliximab therapy. The erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), the number of joints with active disease, and the 27-point juvenile arthritis disease activity score (JADAS-27) were analyzed., Results: The ESR, the active joint count, and the JADAS-27 decreased significantly in all groups after 3 months (P = 0.041/0.415/0.008, 0.022/0.030/ < 0.001, and 0.05/0.012/ < 0.001, respectively) and 6 months (P = 0.036/0.045/0.041, 0.076/0.037/ < 0.001, and 0.096/0.006/ < 0.001, respectively) of infliximab treatment, although the rates of change of these parameters were similar. However, after 12 months, only patients treated with infliximab within 3 months of disease onset had a stable ESR, active joint count, and JADAS-27, while these parameters increased sharply when infliximab was administered 3 months and especially 1 year after disease onset., Conclusions: TNF-alpha is a pleiotropic pro-inflammatory cytokine of crucial importance in the pathogenesis of JIA. Infliximab can improve the outcomes of patients with pJIA significantly, and should be introduced early during the clinical course.

Objective: To detect the disparity of three cytokines interleukin-6 (IL-6), interferon-inducible protein 10 (IP-10) and interleukin-17 (IL-17) in peripheral blood (PB) and synovial fluid (SF) of patients with juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA)., Method: Serum concentrations of the three cytokines were measured in 27 patients with 13 systemic-onset JIA (sJIA), 14 polyarticular JIA (pJIA) and 28 healthy controls using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Nineteen patients with no marked arthritis symptom or only temporary arthralgia were enrolled in probable sJIA group. SF from 18 patients with 7 sJIA, 11 pJIA were examined for cytokine levels., Result: (1) The statistically significant difference in serum IL-6 was detected between sJIA and healthy control group [28.0(4.2-59.2) ng/L vs. 12.3 (2.1-13.8) ng/L, P < 0.05], but no significant difference between probable sJIA and healthy control group [11.8(7.7-39.2) ng/L vs. 12.3 (2.1-13.8) ng/L, P > 0.05] was found. There were statistically significant differences between sJIA group and healthy control group in serum concentrations of IL-17 [14.0(9.8-34.3) ng/L vs. 9.8 (7.9-16.2) ng/L, P < 0.05], yet compared to healthy control group, no significant difference in concentration level of IL-17 was found in pJIA Group [14.2(9.9-16.9) ng/L vs. 9.8(7.9-16.2) ng/L, P > 0.05].(2) In sJIA and pJIA SF, the median IP-10 level was significantly higher compared to respective PB levels [619.7 (160.9, 873.1) ng/L vs. 64.8 (27.4-111.9) ng/L;660.9 (401.9, 1349.8) ng/L vs. 97.4 (41.9-222.1) ng/L, P < 0.01, respectively], but there was only significant difference in IL-17 between pJIA SF and PB [22.9 (17.1, 45.8) ng/L vs. 14.2 (9.9-16.9) ng/L, P < 0.01]., Conclusion: IL-6 may play more important role in the pathogenesis of sJIA. Moreover, IL-6 may be the biomarker associated with arthritis in early JIA stage. Both autoinflammation and autoimmune response may be involved in the pathogenesis of sJIA. IL-17 enrichment may only occur in local joint, the levels of IL-17 in PB may not be significantly increased. The prominent expression gradient between SF and PB of IP-10 maybe the basis of performing chemotaxis and further causing joint damage.