# Epigenetic regulation of esophageal epithelial barrier function in eosinophilic esophagitis

> **NIH NIH K08** · CHILDREN'S HOSP OF PHILADELPHIA · 2020 · $185,328

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
The proposed research explores the mechanisms of epithelial barrier dysfunction in eosinophilic esophagitis
(EoE). During its active disease phase, EoE is characterized by Th2-type, eosinophil-rich inflammation with high
levels of IL-13, IL-4 and chemoattractant chemokines. There is a growing appreciation that epithelial dysfunction
in active EoE may play an equally important role as the inflammatory component due to sensitization to allergens
and exposure to microbes. Additionally, data suggests that for many patients, epithelial dysfunction persists
during inactive EoE when therapy has cleared the inflammatory infiltrate. The mechanism of persistent epithelial
dysfunction is poorly understood. However, we and others have observed a reproducible, dysregulated gene
expression pattern during active EoE with aberrant expression of epithelial structural proteins. We show that
epithelial cells from EoE patients maintain aspects of this dysregulated gene expression pattern when grown in
a neutral culture environment. This suggests that epigenetic mechanisms maintain these gene expression
patterns in EoE epithelium in the absence of inflammation. Notably, in vitro IL-13 treatment of control epithelial
cells replicates similar aspects of the EoE mucosal transcriptome, suggesting a specific role for this Th2 cytokine
in the epithelial barrier dysfunction of EoE. IL-13-associated epigenetic alteration of epithelial function has been
shown in several types of epithelium but the affected loci and functional implications in the esophagus are
unclear. The hypothesis of this proposal is that IL-13 induces epigenetic changes in the esophageal epithelium
of patients with EoE, leading to persistent epithelial dysfunction. The work will leverage access to a training team
with expertise in epigenetics, transcriptomics and bioinformatics is uniquely situated to work with a pediatric
population of EoE patients. Aim 1 will use a three dimensional air-liquid interface model of esophageal squamous
epithelium to determine if chronic in vitro exposure to IL-13 treatment induces epigenetic changes and barrier
dysfunction in primary epithelium from non-EoE control patients. The goal of this aim is to identify if IL-13
treatment is associated with alterations in histone marks and gene expression changes in genes known to affect
barrier function. Aim 2 will use biopsy tissue from patients with and without EoE to examine changes in histone
marks and gene expression in the esophageal epithelium. The goal of this aim is to identify and localize a set of
epithelial genes with persistently dysregulated expression in active and inactive EoE (when compared to control
patients). The outcome of these studies will inform the understanding of esophageal epithelial barrier dysfunction
and EoE disease persistence, and provide the basis for the applicant’s first R01 submission. The overarching
goal of the research strategy and training plan in this proposal is to develop th...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9869490
- **Project number:** 1K08AI148456-01
- **Recipient organization:** CHILDREN'S HOSP OF PHILADELPHIA
- **Principal Investigator:** Melanie A Ruffner
- **Activity code:** K08 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $185,328
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2020-01-01 → 2024-12-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9869490

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9869490, Epigenetic regulation of esophageal epithelial barrier function in eosinophilic esophagitis (1K08AI148456-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-21 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9869490. Licensed CC0.

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