KD is an acute vasculitis of unknown etiology that is the leading cause of acquired heart disease in children in the United States and Japan. Although the acute illness resolves spontaneously, permanent damage to the coronary arteries occurs in 20-25% of untreated children. High dose intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG, 2 g/kg) administered within the first 10 days after fever onset in combination with high dose aspirin reduces the risk of coronary artery aneurysms to 3-5% in IVIG-responsive patients. However, approximately 15-30% of children are resistant to IVIG and will develop recrudescent fever and clinical signs within 48 hours following their IVIG infusion. These patients are at increased risk of developing coronary artery abnormalities and require additional anti-inflammatory therapy. Motivated by the central role of TNFa in KD pathogenesis, we initiated a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, two-center Phase III clinical trial of infliximab plus IVIG for the primary treatment of acute KD. The trial is funded by the FDA Orphan Disease program through an RO1 funding mechanism and is currently enrolling patients at the two clinical sites (Clintrials.gov identifier NCT00760435). We postulate that the administration of infliximab will result in more rapid resolution of inflammation and improved coronary artery outcome through three different mechanisms: 1) Blocking the maturation of specific subsets of macrophages and dendritic cells;2) Limiting the effector function of pro-inflammatory CD8+ T cells and T helper (Th) 1 cells, including memory T-cells;3) Facilitating the expansion and differentiation of peripherally induced regulatory T cells. We further postulate that a functional polymorphism in the inositol 1,4,5-triphosphate 3-kinase C (ITPKC) that affects T-cell activation through the calcineurin/NFAT pathway will influence the magnitude of the inflammatory response in patients heterozygous for the C allele. Accordingly we propose to study the innate and adaptive immune response in KD patients enrolled in the clinical trial and correlate these studies with clinical response and patient genotype at the ITPKC locus. The studies proposed here are significant because they address the mechanisms underlying response to treatment in children with a potentially life-threatening disease. They are innovative because they leverage patients from an ongoing clinical trial to answer fundamental questions about the role of TNFa in KD pathogenesis that can only be answered by comparing """"""""immunological snapshots"""""""" of patients in the two treatment arms. These ancillary studies will capitalize on the expertise of a seasoned KD investigator and a well-establish cellular immunologist to generate new information on the immunologic consequences of two different treatments for KD. Relevance to Public Health: Kawasaki disease is the leading cause of acquired pediatric heart disease in developed countries, which if left untreated, results in serious coronary artery damage in 25% of patients. This proposal seeks to understand how the immune system is modulated by different therapies and how patient genetics shapes the immune response. These studies may lead to new treatments that will prevent heart damage.

Public Health Relevance

Kawasaki disease is the leading cause of acquired pediatric heart disease in developed countries, which if left untreated, results in serious coronary artery damage in 25% of patients. This proposal seeks to understand how the immune system is modulated by different therapies and how patient genetics shapes the immune response. These studies may lead to new treatments that will prevent heart damage.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI)
Type
Research Project (R01)
Project #
5R01HL103536-03
Application #
8230550
Study Section
Special Emphasis Panel (ZHL1-CSR-G (F1))
Program Officer
Burns, Kristin
Project Start
2010-04-15
Project End
2014-02-28
Budget Start
2012-03-01
Budget End
2013-02-28
Support Year
3
Fiscal Year
2012
Total Cost
$382,388
Indirect Cost
$134,888
Name
University of California San Diego
Department
Pediatrics
Type
Schools of Medicine
DUNS #
804355790
City
La Jolla
State
CA
Country
United States
Zip Code
92093
Burns, Jane C; Koné-Paut, Isabelle; Kuijpers, Taco et al. (2017) Review: Found in Translation: International Initiatives Pursuing Interleukin-1 Blockade for Treatment of Acute Kawasaki Disease. Arthritis Rheumatol 69:268-276
Rizk, Sherif R Y; El Said, Galal; Daniels, Lori B et al. (2015) Acute myocardial ischemia in adults secondary to missed Kawasaki disease in childhood. Am J Cardiol 115:423-7
Burns, Jane C; Franco, Alessandra (2015) The immunomodulatory effects of intravenous immunoglobulin therapy in Kawasaki disease. Expert Rev Clin Immunol 11:819-25
Burns, Jane C; Touma, Ranim; Song, Yali et al. (2015) Fine specificities of natural regulatory T cells after IVIG therapy in patients with Kawasaki disease. Autoimmunity 48:181-8
Franco, Alessandra; Touma, Ranim; Song, Yali et al. (2014) Specificity of regulatory T cells that modulate vascular inflammation. Autoimmunity 47:95-104
Shimizu, Chisato; Oharaseki, Toshiaki; Takahashi, Kei et al. (2013) The role of TGF-ýý and myofibroblasts in the arteritis of Kawasaki disease. Hum Pathol 44:189-98
Burns, J C; Song, Y; Bujold, M et al. (2013) Immune-monitoring in Kawasaki disease patients treated with infliximab and intravenous immunoglobulin. Clin Exp Immunol 174:337-44
Ogata, Shohei; Shimizu, Chisato; Franco, Alessandra et al. (2013) Treatment response in Kawasaki disease is associated with sialylation levels of endogenous but not therapeutic intravenous immunoglobulin G. PLoS One 8:e81448
Tremoulet, Adriana H; Pancoast, Paige; Franco, Alessandra et al. (2012) Calcineurin inhibitor treatment of intravenous immunoglobulin-resistant Kawasaki disease. J Pediatr 161:506-512.e1