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  • Programme Area 3

Chronic inflammation in childhood

  • Autoinflammation
  • Rheumatism in children

Understanding chronic inflammation in the developing children

Juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) is the most frequent chronic inflammatory disease in childhood with a prevalence of approximately 1 : 1000. Since the clinical presentation, the prevalence of co-morbidities, and the prognosis of children with JIA differ significantly from adults with different rheumatic diseases, knowledge about the pathogenesis obtained in adults cannot simply be transferred to children. JIA-specific markers for classifying disease subtypes, defining endotypes and predicting therapeutic response are missing.

Prof. Dr. med. Tilmann Kallinich

Programme Area 3, PA 3 – Systems Rheumatology

Group leader: Chronic inflammation in childhood

Liaison working group with Charité - Dep. of Pediatric Respiratory Medicine, Immunology and Critical Care Medicine

tilmann.kallinich@charite.de

About us

In cooperation with the research group of Mir-Farzin Mashreghi, we aim to define molecular immune cell signatures in the inflamed synovia and in the peripheral blood of children suffering from different forms of JIA. With these results we will define markers specific for the different forms of JIA which can be traced in peripheral blood. Using data from newly established cohorts, we aim to analyze the suitability of these tools to classify the disease, monitor the disease activity and finally to predict the response to different therapeutic regimens. This translational approach will help to establish JIA-specific endotypes, which are fundamental for the development of personalised treatment strategies.

Monogenic alterations causing systemic inflammatory diseases usually manifest in early childhood. They are characterized by excessive production of pro-inflammatory cytokines and are referred to as autoinflammatory diseases (AID). In the last decade, analysis of these underlying molecular genetic alterations has uncovered new immunological pathomechanisms, e.g. the dysregulation of the inflammasome reaction. Analyzing our cohort of patients with defined, (e.g. interferonopathies, inflammasomopathies) as well as unassigned AID, we aim to comprehensively immunophenotype different immune cell populations in order to develop diagnostic markers and unravel the pathological processes leading to excessive cytokine production.

Team

Group leader
Prof. Dr. med. Tilmann Kallinich

Scientists
Dr. med. Carl Götzke
Dr. med. Lisa Ehlers

Study coordinators
Lena Frey

Study physicians
Dr. Sae-Lim von Stuckrad
Dr. Mareike Lieber
Elisabeth Rolfes
Daiva Gorcyzca

Ph.D. students
Katharina Bienioschek
Antje Bjelde
Bengue Sahin

Main cooperation partners

MF Mashreghi (DRFZ), A Kruglow (DRFZ), HD Chang (DRFZ), E. Latz (DRFZ), V Sunkaya (DRFZ), K Minden (DRFZ), MA Mall (Charité), H von Bernuth (Charité), C Romagnani (Charité), A Diefenbach (Charité)

D Foell (Muenster), MA Lee-Kirsch (Dresden), C. Schuetz (Dresden), K Tenbrock (Aachen)

Involvement in trial performance with Novartis, Lilly, Pfizer

Involvement in trial performance with Novartis, Lilly, Pfizer

Projects

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