Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41026618›Full record

SynthesisUnited European gastroenterology journal2025

Immune Activation in Primary Sclerosing Cholangitis: A Systematic Review and Comparative Analysis With Inflammatory Bowel Diseases.

Md Moniruzzaman, Ayesha Shah, Thomas Fairlie, Simon Keely, Grace L Burns, Nicholas Talley, Gerald Holtmann

Abstract readSystematic ReviewComparative Study
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Synthesis in United European gastroenterology journal, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.

  1. Pooled it
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors.

Md MoniruzzamanFaculty of Health, Medicine, and Behavioural Sciences, The University of Queensland, Translational Research Institute, Brisbane, Australia.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3905-8627
Ayesha ShahDepartment of Gastroenterology & Hepatology, Princess Alexandra Hospital, Brisbane, Australia.
Thomas FairlieFaculty of Health, Medicine, and Behavioural Sciences, The University of Queensland, Translational Research Institute, Brisbane, Australia.
Simon KeelySchool of Biomedical Sciences & Pharmacy, College of Health Medicine and Wellbeing, University of Newcastle, Newcastle, Australia.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1248-9590
Grace L BurnsSchool of Biomedical Sciences & Pharmacy, College of Health Medicine and Wellbeing, University of Newcastle, Newcastle, Australia.
Nicholas TalleySchool of Biomedical Sciences & Pharmacy, College of Health Medicine and Wellbeing, University of Newcastle, Newcastle, Australia.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2537-3092
Gerald HoltmannFaculty of Health, Medicine, and Behavioural Sciences, The University of Queensland, Translational Research Institute, Brisbane, Australia.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0206-2358

Funding

Medical Research Future Fund APP1200184National Health and Medical Research Council APP10845440NHMRC Centre for Research Excellence APP170993
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

BACKGROUND AND

objectivesPrimary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC) is a chronic liver disease with aberrant immune dysregulation and bile duct fibrosis. It is often associated with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), especially ulcerative colitis, raising questions about distinct immune activation in these conditions. Therefore, we aimed to systematically review and compare immune activation patterns in patients with PSC and IBD (without PSC), which may provide deeper insights into PSC pathophysiology.

methodsMEDLINE, Scopus, Cochrane Library, and Embase were searched until July 2024 for relevant studies reporting immune cell profiles, cytokine levels, and gene expression patterns in patients with PSC. Reference articles of patients with IBD were then added to compare the immune profile of patients with PSC (with or without IBD) and patients with IBD-only.

resultsTwenty-three articles studying 638 PSC and 557 non-PSC non-IBD subjects were included. PSC patients showed various degrees of immune activation in the systemic circulation, biliary fluid, and liver tissue, most notably regarding integrin β7+ gut-homing T cells, IL-2, and IL-10 compared to their respective controls. Compared with patients with IBD, patients with PSC had reduced Tregs in the systemic circulation. When comparing tissue-based immune markers, PSC-livers had increased Th17 cells, IL-1β, and TNF-α and reduced levels of B cells, IL-2, and IL-10 than the IBD-mucosa.

conclusionsPatients with PSC and patients with IBD without PSC can be differentiated by a distinct immune activation pattern with upregulation of Th17 and downregulation of Treg functions in PSC while other immune parameters do not allow a differentiation of these conditions.

Indexed as

Cholangitis, SclerosingInflammatory Bowel DiseasesCytokinesHumansLiverT-Lymphocytes, RegulatoryCytokinescytokinesimmune activationinflammatory bowel diseasesprimary sclerosing cholangitisregulatory T cells (Tregs)Th17 cellsulcerative colitis

Identifiers

PMID41026618
PMCPMC12605952

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.