Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42375354›Full record

ArticleFrontiers in immunology2026

Urinary antimicrobial peptides and cytokines as biomarkers for recurrent urinary tract infection in children and adolescents.

Guillermo Yepes, Hancong Chloe Tang, Natalie Holdsworth, Kristin Salamon, Laura Schwartz, Christina Ching, Steve Rust, John David Spencer

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Article in Frontiers in immunology, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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1 · What the graph read from it

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2 · The registry

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3 · Its place in the literature

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4 · The record

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5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

8 authors.

Guillermo YepesDivision of Infectious Diseases, Fellowship Training Program, Nationwide Children's Hospital, Columbus, OH, United States.
Hancong Chloe TangData Science Office, Nationwide Children's Hospital, Columbus, OH, United States.
Natalie HoldsworthKidney and Urinary Tract Center, The Abigail Wexner Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital, Columbus, OH, United States.
Kristin SalamonKidney and Urinary Tract Center, The Abigail Wexner Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital, Columbus, OH, United States.
Laura SchwartzKidney and Urinary Tract Center, The Abigail Wexner Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital, Columbus, OH, United States.
Christina ChingKidney and Urinary Tract Center, The Abigail Wexner Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital, Columbus, OH, United States.
Steve RustData Science Office, Nationwide Children's Hospital, Columbus, OH, United States.
John David SpencerKidney and Urinary Tract Center, The Abigail Wexner Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital, Columbus, OH, United States.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Background: Recurrent urinary tract infection (rUTI) is a major diagnostic and clinical challenge. Dysregulated innate immune responses, including antimicrobial peptides and cytokines, may underlie UTI susceptibility. This study investigates whether urinary concentrations of antimicrobial peptides and cytokines differ in children and adolescents with a history of rUTI and whether they can accurately classify rUTI status. Methods: In this single-center cross-sectional study, urine samples were collected from asymptomatic girls and adolescent females with a history of rUTI and age-matched controls recruited at Nationwide Children's Hospital (Columbus, Ohio, USA). Concentrations of antimicrobial peptides (alpha-defensins 1-3, beta-defensin 1, cathelicidin, secretory leukocyte protease inhibitor, lipocalin 2, and ribonuclease 7) and cytokines (interleukin-1 beta, interleukin-6, interleukin-8, and tumor necrosis factor alpha) were quantified using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays. A logistic regression model with variable selection was developed to classify rUTI participants based on urinary biomarkers and clinical factors. Findings: Between 2019 and 2022, urine samples were analyzed from 42 participants with rUTI and 37 healthy controls without UTI. Compared to controls, participants with rUTI had lower concentrations of beta-defensin 1, cathelicidin, and ribonuclease 7, and higher concentrations of alpha-defensins 1-3, lipocalin 2, and secretory leukocyte protease inhibitor. Cytokine concentrations, including interleukin-1 beta, interleukin-6, interleukin-8, and tumor necrosis factor alpha, were elevated in the rUTI group. A multivariable classification model integrating urinary biomarkers with clinical features demonstrated high discriminatory performance with an area under the receiver operating curve of 0.97 and a prevalence-adjusted area under the precision-recall curve of 0.94. Interpretation: Girls and adolescent females with rUTI exhibit a distinct urinary immune profile characterized by dysregulated antimicrobial peptides and elevated proinflammatory cytokines. A model integrating these biomarkers with clinical features accurately classified rUTI status, supporting their potential utility as biomarkers for identifying youth with rUTI.

Indexed as

Antimicrobial PeptidesCytokinesUrinary Tract InfectionsAdolescentBiomarkersChildCross-Sectional StudiesFemaleHumansRecurrenceAntimicrobial PeptidesBiomarkersCytokinesantimicrobial peptidescytokinespediatricsregression modelurinary tract infection

Identifiers

PMID42375354
PMCPMC13310754

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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.