Transcriptional analysis of liver tissue from indeterminate pediatric acute liver failure patients

ABSTRACT: Background and Aims: Many patients with indeterminate pediatric acute liver failure (PALF) have evidence of T-cell driven immune injury, however the precise inflammatory pathways have not been well defined. We have thus characterized the hepatic cytokine and transcriptional signatures of PALF patients. Approach and Results: Retrospective review was performed on 22 children presenting with indeterminate (IND-PALF; n=17) or other diagnoses (DX-PALF; n=6) with available archived liver tissue. Specimens were stained for CD8 T-cells and scored as dense, moderate, or minimal. Measurement of immune analytes and RNA-sequencing (RNA-seq) were performed on whole liver tissue. Immune analyte data was analyzed by principal component analysis, and RNA-seq was analyzed by unsupervised hierarchical clustering, differential gene expression, and gene set enrichment analysis. Most IND-PALF patients (94%) had dense/moderate CD8 staining and were characterized by Th1 immune analytes including TNFα, IFNγ, IL-1β, IL-12, CXCL9, and CXCL12. Transcriptional analyses identified 2 transcriptional PALF phenotypes. Most patients in Group 1 (91%) had IND-PALF and dense/moderate CD8 staining. This group was characterized by increased expression of genes and cell-subset specific signatures related to innate inflammation, T-cell activation, and antigen stimulation. Group 1 also expressed significantly higher levels of gene signatures for T-regulatory cells, macrophages, Th1 cells, T effector memory cells, cytotoxic T-cells, and activated dendritic cells (p-adj <0.05). In contrast, patients in Group 2 exhibited increased expression for genes involved in metabolic processes. Conclusions: IND-PALF patients have evidence of a Th1 mediated inflammatory response driven by IFNγ. Transcriptional analyses suggest a complex immune network may regulate an immune-driven PALF phenotype with less evidence of metabolic processes. These findings provide novel insight into mechanisms of hepatic injury in PALF, areas for future research, and potential therapeutic targets.

ORGANISM(S): Homo sapiens

PROVIDER: GSE164397 | GEO | 2021/06/01

REPOSITORIES: GEO